Seacon bulker reports engine room flooding

First vessel to respond was Arctia Oy's icebreaker Nordica,

MARCH 9, 2017 — The 40,000 dwt Panama flag bulker Glory Hongkong was yesterday reported taking on water in international waters to the west of Suursaari island, Finland

At 12.41, March 8, the Finnish Border Guard’s MRCS Helsinki received a distress message stating that water was leaking into the vessel’s engine room and that the reported water depth was approx. 5 meters.

The ship reported that the engine room doors are tightly closed, preventing the water from leaking into other areas. The water was reported to be leaking into the engine room from the bilge well.

“At this stage, grounding is not suspected,” the Border Guard said yesterday. “The situation on the ship is stable. Even if the compartment were flooded, the ship does not risk sinking.”

First to respond were Arctia Oy’s icebreaker Nordica, which was located closest to the scene, the Border Guard’s maritime SAR helicopter, as well as patrol vessel Tursas.

At the time of the incident, the ship, which is operated by the Hong Kong based Seacon Group, was in international waters en route to St. Petersburg, Russia.

The Border Guard is maintaining immediate preparedness to evacuate the ship’s crew of 22 and assist the ship in limiting the damage.