ELKE M

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Wreck removal resumed

Work on the removal of the last batch of loosened parts of the wreck of the 'Elke M', that ran aground near St Francis Bay in the Eastern Cape in January 2024, has resumed. The removal of the loose steel parts of the vessel began on Nov 21 and continued this week. Resumption of the work, halted since May 2024 due to a hostile wintry weather characterised by strong winds and huge waves along the Cape of Good Hope Ocean corridor, began following the completion an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) under Section 30 of National Environmetral Management Act (NEMA) by an expert environmentalist and scientist, Dr Warwick Sauer, of the faculty of Ichthyology and Fisheries Sciences at Rhodes University. The reduced steel structural portion of the vessel, which was left on the coastline at Shark Point, near St. Francis Bay, had since firmly settled on the rocky shoreline at a much faster rate than had been anticipated. The steel was divided into three parts. The grounding ihaad occurred on theevening on Jan 6 on a rocky coastal area of the Cape coast in the Eastern Cape, about two kilometres southeast of St Francis Bay. TNSRI had assisted in the evacuation of all 22 crew members aboard the vessel. Salvage work was initiated shortly thereafter to reduce and remove the vessel’s 35 tons of marine fuel and approximately 2000 litres of lubricating oil. In May 2024, after additional evaluations of its disfigured and torn bare structure, which was divided into three sections, it was determined to be temporarily safe during the stormy winter months that began that month. In the intervening period, a services provider procured by the vessel owner’s insurers remained posted to monitor the vessel remains’ condition. The monitoring company also collected debris found in the area, and most of which did not emerge from the bare and broken structure of the 'Elke M'. The vigilance would continue through to February 2025 by which period much of what remains of the wreck will possibly have been completely removed. The wreck removal team utilised a helicopter to lift and dispose of loose steel parts of the wreck that were ripped off its skeletal structure by the pounding of sea waves during the winter months. The operation process initially concentrated on reduction of the wreck to the waterline level, followed by a process to split the sub-sea section into multiple sections for scuttling. Report with photos: https://blog.samsa.org.za/2024/11/27/wreck-removal-of-grounded-fishing-trawler-fv-elke-m-underway-in-st-francis-bay-samsa/

Fisherman lost over board

On Aug 23, 2015, at 3.30 p.m. NSRI Port Elizabeth were informed by the Transnet National Ports Authority (TNPA) of a fisherman reported overboard the "Ele M"40 nautical miles South West of Cape Recife. The fisherman, reported to not be wearing a life-jacket, was noticed to be missing at 2 p.m. and was believed to have last been seen onboard at approximately noon and was believed to be missing overboard. Maritime Authorities were alerted at 2.36 p.m. The fishing vessel "Sandile" conducted a search but no sign of the fisherman was found.