Rescued stranded cargo ship preparing to leave Karachi Port

KARACHI: Cargo vessel (MV) Heng Tong 77 that was stuck at the Karachi coast on July 20 and later rescued and berthed at Karachi Port, now preparing to leave the port, quoting sources ARY News reported on Saturday.

The owner of the merchant ship has paid the port charges and other expenses to the authorities as the KPT officials have received a cheque of Rs. 1,55,48,402, sources said.

A tug boat has also reached to drag cargo vessel (MV) Heng Tong 77 from Pakistani waters. The route of the tug boat and the plan to drag the vessel have also been handed over to the KPT authorities.

The Marine Mercantile Department will now complete its survey and the ship will be issued the Port Clearance Certificate after completion of this survey.

The vessel was refloated after multiple failed efforts. The salvage master recently commissioned to extricate the ill-fated ship, successfully put it back into the sea.

Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Maritime Affairs Mahmood Moulvi had said the refloating endeavor took a fortune for the cost, the entire bill was footed by the ship’s owner and none by the government.

After the vessel ran aground at Seaview beach in Karachi in July the Pakistan Navy along with other maritime stakeholders safely completed the de-fuelling process of a merchant.

On July 27, 2003, Tasman Spirit, an oil tanker, ran aground while navigating to the port of Karachi. It broke up and spilled around 30,000 metric tonnes of oil over the next few days, which is one of Pakistan’s worst environmental disasters.