The Fremantle Highway Fire Continues – Dutch Kustwacht Summary of Activity Yesterday and Latest Update

Dateline 28 July 2023  at 09:12 CET

The Fremantle Highway drifts 17 kilometers north of Terschelling. There are no other developments yet. The tug Fairplay 30 has a towing connection with the ship.

The recovery companies monitor the situation and collect information for a recovery plan. The Coast Guard plane takes new images of the Fremantle Highway in the morning.

The following vessels are also on site:
– Guardian (tugboat)
– Multrasalvor 4 (support vessel of the recovery companies)
– Hunter (tugboat)

– Arca – Kustwacht oil recovery vessel, but now provides traffic control and warns vessels to keep their distance from the Fremantle Highway. The Arca is a measuring and oil control vessel with, among other things, two sweeping arms, each fifteen meters long, that can clean up oil spills. In addition, the Arca can be used for research into the seabed and the marine environment.

Daily summary of Thursday 27 July

The Fremantle Highway was driven towards Terschelling in a controlled manner on Thursday. This poses no additional risks. The most favorable drift direction is determined on the basis of current and wind direction.

The tugboat Fairplay 30 has taken over the emergency connection from the Hunter. The new towing connection is stronger than the previous one. The Fairplay 30 keeps the ship between the shipping routes so that shipping can pass at a safe distance.

In the afternoon the ship would be turned to drift back east with the current. This plan has been adjusted due to a change in the wind direction. During the evening, the Fremantle Highway was held in place by the tugboat. The current and wind direction are continuously monitored to determine the most favorable drift direction.

The fire is still raging and there is still a lot of smoke. However, the intensity of the fire seems to have decreased compared to yesterday. It is not yet safe to bring a salvage team aboard the ship.

The ship is no longer constantly cooled to prevent an unnecessary amount of water from entering the ship. This would endanger the stability of the ship. On Wednesday there was continuous cooling because the fire was more intense at that time.

A recovery team on board the emergency tug Guardian monitors the situation on site. They’re gathering information for a salvage plan. The Coast Guard aircraft is monitoring the situation from the air. The situation is still stable.

Arca – Kustwacht oil recovery vessel, but now provides traffic control and warns vessels to keep their distance from the Fremantle Highway Photograph courtesy of Kustwacht

Featured Title photograph

Multrasalvor 4 – support vessel of the recovery companies Photograph courtesy of Multraship Towage & Salvage

Source Kustwacht and Multraship Towage & Salvage