Bulker Harvest Sky Still Aground off Taiwan

Taiwan's Maritime and Port Bureau Panama-flagged bulk carrier Harvest Sky is still stuck off the coast of Taiwans Taoyuan City, where it ran aground in the morning hours of October 14, the countrys Maritime and Port Bureau (MOTC) informed. The 2013-built ship, loaded with some 19,000 tons of coal and 1,590 tons of diesel, suffered a steering gear failure in rough weather which lead to the incident. There were no reports of water pollution following the grounding, MOTC said, adding that all of the vessels 21 crew members were safe. The authorities set up an emergency response team to monitor the area for any possible signs of an oil spill. An emergency meeting with a representative of the ship owner, Taiwans coast guard, the Taoyuan County Environmental Protection Bureau, and the Maritime and Port Bureau, concluded that the vessel would be towed to safety when the weather conditions at the site improved. The ships owner has hired Nippon Salvage to conduct the refloating operations. According to AIS data from Marine Traffic, the 95,717 dwt ship was on its way from the countrys Port of Kaohsiung to Linkou District when it ran into trouble. World Maritime News Staff