Contractor completes oil removal from sunken Manolis L near Change Islands
Hull survey and monitoring of shipwreck will continue
Oil from a sunken ship off the coast of Change Islands has been successfully removed, said the Canadian Coast Guard.
The Manolis L, a paper carrier, sank in Notre Dame Bay in 1985 with 150,000 litres of oil aboard. Early last month, work began to remove that oil using remotely operated underwater vehicles, or ROVs, to avoid risks to human divers and allow for longer dives.
<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ManolisL?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ManolisL</a> Update: This video, remotely operated underwater by <a href="https://twitter.com/ArdentGlobal?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@ArdentGlobal</a>, shows how we recover oil from inside the shipwreck. Here the hull has been penetrated by the tapping tool to access a tank and pump the oil and water mixture to storage containers aboard ship. <a href="https://t.co/JYvAhDNOYV">pic.twitter.com/JYvAhDNOYV</a>
—@CoastGuardCANA salvage vessel, the Tidewater Enabler, pumped oil from the wreck, under 70 metres of water on Newfoundland's northeast coast. The $15-million contract for oil removal was given to Houston-based Ardent Global.
On Saturday afternoon, the coast guard announced that bulk oil pumping operations are complete.
"The hull survey and monitoring period has commenced and continues until we depart from the site," tweeted the coast guard.
<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ManolisL?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ManolisL</a> Update: YES!! Bulk oil pumping operations are now complete. The hull survey and monitoring period has commenced and continues until we depart from the site.
—@CoastGuardCAN