The ship is loaded with 20,000 tons of ammonium nitrate from Russia. The same type of material that on August 4, 2020 left the port of Lebanon’s capital Beirut in ruins after the largest man-made non-nuclear explosion ever, which killed 218, injured 7500 and left 300,000 people homeless.
At the beginning of September, Ruby sought emergency harbor in the northern Norwegian city of Tromsø after a grounding, which left the 14-year-old ship with a damaged propeller, a damaged rudder and cracks in the hull.
Here, the ship was rejected by the Norwegian authorities due to fear of the explosive cargo. Since then, the ship has tried in vain to dock in Bergen, and now the plan is a passage through Danish waters along Route T through the Great Belt and further into the Baltic Sea in the hope of having the damage repaired in the Lithuanian port city of Klaipeda.
According to the media Danwatch, however, the Lithuanian authorities have already refused the application, unless Ruby unloads its entire cargo in another port before then.
It is unknown when the cargo ship, which sails under the Maltese flag, will round Skagen.
On Thursday, the ship changed its AIS signal status to “Not Under Command”, meaning it is unable to maneuver on its own.
The ship’s movement is therefore carried out with the assistance of a tugboat, and right now Ruby is sneaking into the Skagerrak at a speed of a paltry three knots per hour, which corresponds to 5.5 kilometers per hour.
Michael Rasmussen, head of the secretariat at the piloting company DanPilot, informs Nordjyske that the captain of the Ruby has requested pilot assistance on the voyage through Danish waters along the so-called Route T, which runs east of Læsø and down through the Great Belt and the Fehmarn Belt, before the ship passes Gedser and sets course into the Baltic Sea.
The pilot will be sailed out to Ruby from DanPilot’s station in Skagen and will remain on board until Gedser has passed.
DanPilot performs around 23,000 pilot assistances annually. Michael Rasmussen informs Nordjyske that there is no obligation to pilot through Danish waters – but that it is a clear recommendation.
According to the American media The Maritime Executive, the ship’s owners are based in Syria, but should currently be chartered by a company in the United Arab Emirates.
2024-09-20 09:52:49
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