A single-hulled tanker carrying 35 000 metric tons of diesel fuel that ran aground last week left for Boston on Wednesday, after the Danish Maritime Authority said its hull wasn’t damaged.
Three tug boats, aided by high tides, pulled the 22-year-old Bahamas-registered Acushnet out of shallow waters on Tuesday, after some 4 700 metric tons of fuel were removed from the ship. No leaks were reported.
The tanker, which ran aground on Friday east of Samsoe island in the Kattegat sea between Denmark’s Jutland peninsula and southern Sweden, was taken to a nearby harbour for an inspection of its hull.
The Danish Maritime Authorities said on Wednesday that the hull was intact and the ship, with a crew of 25, could continue its journey. As it left Danish waters with a pilot guiding the ship, the Acushnet sailed through the channel where it ran aground.
As many as 160 000 vessels sail through Danish straits annually, on the main route for sailing between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea.
Last month, a Russian single-hulled tanker carrying 70 000 tons of crude oil was stopped in Danish waters for two days and ordered to repair its steering. – Sapa-AP