Ship stranded on Mumbai beach refloated

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Mumbai, July 2: Three weeks after scrapped cargo ship MV Wisdom ran aground at Juhu Beach in north Mumbai, maritime authorities succeeded in refloating it Saturday afternoon, an official said here.

As soon as a high tide developed this morning, efforts were started to remove the ship with the help of emergency towing vessels from Singapore Lumba and Greatship Ashmi, chartered by the shipping ministry.

Around 1 p.m., MV Wisdom shifted from the Juhu Beach and started bobbing in the Arabian Sea.

The official said the ship was now anchored at a location just off Mumbai and arrangements were being made to tow it to its final destination in Gujarat.

The Singapore flag 9,367 tonne 26-year-old vessel went adrift June 11 from its tug that was towing it from Colombo to Alang in Gujarat, where it was to be broken as scrap.

Despite efforts for three days by the Indian maritime authorities, it could not be refloated as it was stuck too deep in the sand.

The Indian maritime authorities finally sought the help of SMIT International, Singapore, which sent the two powerful tug boats equipped with trained personnel.

While it was aground, the ship became a major tourist attraction with lakhs of people coming to the beach to get a glimpse.

IANS