VALDAY

General information

Course/Position

Latest news

Freighter adrift off Rotterdam

The 'Valday' was drifting rudderless off the Dutch coast on Dec 6, 2024, after being disabled en route from Zwijndrecht to Flushing. and was NUC as Not Under Command (NUC) at 7.43 a.m. Attempts to secure and tow the ship initially failed. The ship had no cargo, and seven crew members on board. It was adrift 22 kilometers off the coast of Rotterdam. Tugs were on their way to the freighter. The lifeboat 'Antoinette' from the KNRM station in Stellendam relieved the rescue boat from Hoek van Holland to lie nearby as a ‘safety vessel’. A police helicopter was near the 'Valday'. Earlier in the day, a crew member of the 'Multraship Commander' was injured in the attempt to make a towing connection. The crew member was taken to hospital by a coastguard helicopter. The waves on the North Sea can reach a height of around four metres at a wind force of 8 to 9. According to the Coastguard, other ships besides the 'Valday' were experiencing problems due to the storm. Their engines failed or they did not remain at their anchorage. The Coastguard was in contact with these ships.

Fairplay tugs towed freighter to the Waalhaven

The 'Valday', which had drifted off the coast of Hoek van Holland, was towed to Europoort by the Coast Guard tug 'Multraship Commander' on the evening of Dec 6. In the Caland Canal, where the ship was taken over by the tugs 'Fairplay 29' and 'Fairplay 21' The 'Multraship Conmmander' then cast off and the freighter was towed via the low light and the Nieuwe Waterweg to the Waalhaven in Rotterdam, where it was berthed in basin 2 at around 10 p.m. and remained stationary as of Dec 11. Report with photos: https://www.tugspotters.com/app/content/2024/12/multraship-commander-valday-6-12-2024/

Towing connection established

Several attempts were needed before the tug 'Multraship Commander' could finally establish a towing connection with the 'Valday' in the middle of the afternoon, when the sea was also a lot calmer. Three people were slightly injured during the attempts to establish the towing connection. The one who was taken to hospital by a Coastguard helicopter, has since been released. The other two were taken to hospital for a check-up. The 'Multraship Commander' was now towing the 'Valday' to the port of Rotterdam. The ship arrived in the port at around 11 p.m. The KNRM lifeboat 'Antoinette' from Stellendam has assisted on scene, relieving the 'Koos van Messel', which had been dispatched from Hoek van Holland.. The tug 'Fairplay-33' also made several attempts to secure the 'Valday' after arriving at around 1 p.m, but failed. Report with photos: https://kustwacht.nl/liveblog/vrachtschip-drijft-stuurloos-op-de-noordzee/