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| Charting the course of events as the tug Christos XXII is assisted by the tugs Brentt and Hellas. |
After the "Christos XXII" got in distress. the RNLI Torbay all-weather lifeboat and the Exmouth all-weather lifeboat were sent to the scene, along with a local harbour tug from Brixham, the Royal Navy vessels HMS "Lancaster" and HMS "Severn", the RAF search and rescue helicopter from Chivenor and the Torbay Coastguard Rescue Team.
It had been feared the tug would go down but latest reports indicate the tug "Brent" has come alongside and pumps had stabilized the stricken vessel. The master and the master and chief engineer of the "Christos XXII" already returned to the scene on one of the Royal Navy vessels to attempt a salvage. Six of the 8 crew of the Christos ertr taken off by the Torbay lifeboat and taken to Brixham. The Exmouth lifeboat stood by to monitor the situation.
The Emegerncy Coxswain, went into the engine room to investigate the damage but, even with two pumps running, the "Christos XXII" was still making water and in danger of sinking. Additional pumps were transferred by the nearby HMS "Lancaster", but still the water level was rising. The crew of the "Lancaster" was then able to plug the leak by effecting a temporary repair using wooden wedges, reducing the ingress of water by some 60%.
Meanwhile the towed "Emstrom" had been cast adrift and was picked up later by the local tug "MTS Vulcan". The helicopter from RNAS Chivenor was also on scene and stood by at Walls Hill, Torquay in case it was needed. With the crew safely off and on board the lifeboat, the focus then moved to saving the ship and reducing the pollution threat, from the 200 tons of diesel oil on board. The Dutch salvage tug "Brent" arrived on scene at approximately 1.30 a.m. on Jan 14, being equipped with more powerful pumps and managed to start reducing the water level within the ship.
By daybreak, the "Brent" was confident that she could keep the "Christos XXII" afloat to allow for underwater welders to apply a patch on the 35-cm-breach in the hull of the tug. The Exmouth lifeboat picked up its equipment and returned to their station just before 4 a.m
Video courtesy of the Exmouth and Torbay Lifeboat
