MSC working to recover cargo, debris that fell from cargo ship in Eastern Cape

MSC says it is working to recover containers and debris that fell overboard its cargo ship as it was leaving the East London port last month.

MSC Antonia encountered “adverse sea conditions” when it was leaving South Africa on August 28. 

The company said: “Unfortunately a number of containers were damaged or lost overboard off the coast of East London.

“In close coordination with the South African Maritime Safety Authority (Samsa), MSC has implemented a comprehensive network with a central coordination hub and specialised operators ready to respond along the entire coastline. Ships equipped with sonar have been deployed to search for missing cargo at sea.”

The company confirmed most of the cargo and debris had been spotted and recovered but it was “possible that what is left will wash up ashore in the coming days”.

MSC urged residents to not approach the items but to immediately report their sighting.

“MSC takes the incident very seriously, both in terms of the impact of such accidents on the natural environment and in terms of any damage to customer cargo. In all aspects of the clean-up MSC is collaborating with local authorities.”

TimesLIVE earlier this month reported mop-up operations were under way along the country's eastern coastline between Gqeberha and nearby northeastern towns after thousands of pharmaceutical bottles washed ashore.

• To report sightings, contact Spill Tech at 063-404-2128.

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