NATASJA

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Latest news

Repair of collapsed bridge may take months

The "Maranta" left Antwerp on Jan 18 at 9.15 a.m. and proceeded on the Scheldt towards Brussels. The damage to the Humbeek-Sas-Bridge was considerable. The automatic detection system that automatically lets the bridge up and down did not work for an unclear reason. The bridge was inaccessible to all traffic, including pedestrians and cyclists. All traffic must pass through Kapelle-op-den-Bos or Zemst. Freight transport over the canal was currently not possible. Local road traffic must be detoured via the Verbrande Bridge (Grimbergen) or the Jan Bogaert Bridge in Kapelle-op-den-Bos. At the earliest at the beginning of next week, the bridge deck of the lift bridge can be lifted and removed, before, no shipping on the canal is possible. The further repair work may take several months.

Barge slammed into bridge

On Jan 17, 2019, the "Maranta", 1203 ts (EU-No.: 06003906), loaded with sand, allided with the Humbeek-Sas bridge in Grimbergen on the Brussels-Scheldt Canal. The bridge came down at the moment the ship passed under it at 8.30 a.m. The bridge had been opened for another barge, but when the "Maranta" followed, the deck was already lowered again. The bridge is controlled via a camera system and possibly the camera did not register the second ship, and the captain could no longer avoid the allision. The bridge deck was moved about five meters, and the bridge pillars also have shifted. The fire brigade and the police have closed the area and both road and ship traffic were completely stopped. A contractor will first have to remove the bridge deck and only then the complete damage can be investigated. The "Maranta" berthed nearby with damage to its bow and foreship. Reports with photos and video: https://www.hln.be/regio/grimbergen/brug-komt-naar-beneden-wanneer-schip-eronder-vaart-enorme-ravage-in-grimbergen~aecd5f07/ https://www.tijd.be/ondernemen/transport/brug-over-kanaal-brussel-willebroek-ingezakt/10088070.html https://www.nieuwsblad.be/cnt/dmf20190117_04109773 https://www.nieuwsblad.be/cnt/dmf20190117_04109773

Fourth grounded ship removed

The "Maranta" was refloated by the "Citrine" in the afternoon of Aug 20. At 1.15 p.m. the stern had been lightered so far that it lifted off the bar and was pushed to the river side, followed by the foreship. The pusher boat "Keller" and a dredger started to remove the gravel bars which had built up around the "Maranta" and its lighter. The "Wildente" and the "Mercator" of the Rhina Authority assisted in surveying the water depth at the grounding site on the Deutzer Plate. The "Maranta" was berthed in Deutz. On Aug 21 a dredger of the Hülskens Company was expected in Colonia to remove the shallows. German reports with photos and video: http://www.ksta.de/innenstadt/-sperrungen-des-rheins-zu-viel-tiefgang-wegen-uebergewicht,15187556,24057544.html http://www.ksta.de/innenstadt/-havarien-auf-dem-rhein-die-deutzer-platte-putzen,15187556,24070326.html