Cargo Ship Runs Aground off Virginia
The U.S. Coast Guard said it is monitoring a 586-foot Thai-flagged cargo vessel that ran aground off Sewells Point in Norfolk, Via., Thursday.
Watchstanders at the Sector Hampton Roads Command Center in Portsmouth received a call at 12:50 p.m. that the bulk cargo ship Mallika Naree lost propulsion in the Elizabeth River, struck buoy #5 and ran soft aground outside the channel. The Mallika Naree is carrying cement and steel.
45-foot Response Boat-Medium and 29-foot Response Boat-Small crews from Coast Guard Station Portsmouth and a boat crew from Aids to Navigation Team Hampton Roads launched at about 1 p.m.
An MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew from Coast Guard Air Station Elizabeth City, N.C., was diverted at 1:20 p.m. to conduct an overflight assessment of the surrounding area.
No signs of pollution were detected. No injuries were reported, and the vessel is not taking on water.
Also on scene were crews from the Virginia Marine Resources Commission and the Norfolk Fire Department.
Commercial tug boats arrived on scene and moved the cargo vessel to a nearby anchorage in the Elizabeth River, where it is safely anchored.
