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Coal ship runs aground, crew rescued uninjured

ACCORDING to reports a loaded coal ship has run aground off South Africa's Richards Bay port and ...

Donna Schmidt

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National Sea Rescue officials told Reuters that more than 20 crew members, none of whom have been identified, were pulled from the cargo ship by helicopter after the vessel ran aground in rough seas.

The 230-meter-long ship SMART was being pulled off of a sandbank by tugboats, the agency said, but noted the “structural integrity of the ship was compromised”

The 151,279 metric tonne, single hull ship is registered to Alpha Marine, Reuters said, and the news service indicated the Panamanian group was to deliver cargo to the Fangcheng port in China.

No crew members reported injuries in the incident.

The 165m Kiana Satu hit ground off of South Arica’s southern coast earlier this month, making this incident the second in August for the region.

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