Clearing up the Channel

[sbisson]

The English Channel is possibly the worlds busiest seaway. It's not surprising then, that a sunken car carrier slap bang in the middle of the Channel is the site of one of the world's largest salvage operations. As the site says:

The ‘TRICOLOR’ is a 1987 built Norwegian flagged vehicle carrier, which, in the early hours of 14 December 2002, was struck by ‘Kariba’, a 1982 built Bahamian flagged container ship in the French Exclusive Economic Zone some 20 miles north of the French coast in the English channel.

TRICOLOR sank as a result of the impact of the striking and was eventually declared a total loss. In December 2002 French authorities ordered the TRICOLOR to be removed, as it was perceived to represent a danger to shipping and the environment.

An excellent site, showing the work being done to remove a massive sunken ship from a very hazardous position in the English Channel.

[Update: and there's lots of cool machinery involved!]

Comments

[the-gardener.livejournal.com]

I am genuinely astonished that there is a website devoted exclusively to the salvage of this particular cargo carrier. Presumably there is somebody at Smit Tak who doesn't have enough to do....

[adela-terrell.livejournal.com]

I was working for BMW when the ship went down... one of the technicians in Hastings got a message sent down to his palm...

VHL BMW 3 SERIES
COLOUR UNSURE
FAULT ENGINE FLOODED
LOCATION >>>> er about 40 odd miles off the coast...

Well, we found it funny at the time.

[brisingamen.livejournal.com]

I'm glad they're removing it; the reports of ships running into it were getting repetitive and depressing. Don't suppose I'll be able to see any of this from the clifftops.

[lproven.livejournal.com]

Wow-EEE!

Big machine pr0n!