Second Bulker Grounds in Øresund off Sweden in a Week

Swedish authorities are trying to understand why a second bulker grounded in the Øresund area in less than a week. The incident on Saturday, May 31, was just 40 miles to the north of where a bulker went aground on Sunday, May 25, but so far there are few similarities between the two incidents.

A bulker flagged in Panama, Meshka (35,829 dwt) was southbound in the shipping channel coming from Tarragona, Spain to the small Russian port of Vysotsk near the border with Finland. According to Swedish media reports, the Swedish Maritime Administration’s traffic center (VTS) spotted that the ship was outside the shipping lane and warned the ship around 1000 on Saturday morning. The crew either ignored the warning or did not have time to respond and change course.

The vessel which was traveling only with fuel and ballast however had a draft of seven meters. It ran aground in an area with only three meters of depth. 

The rescue authority dispatched two vessels to investigate and the Swedish Maritime Administration and Coast Guard both responded. It was determined that none of the 24 crew aboard had been injured and there was no immediately apparent damage or oil leaks from the ship. The Coast Guard was assigned authority while the others were standing by in case they needed to become involved.

The Coast Guard reports it conducted sobriety checks and found no suspicions of drunkenness among the crew. They were still interviewing the crew to understand what caused the grounding. It reported on Sunday that it has initiated a preliminary investigation regarding a lack of good seamanship in connection with the grounding. The investigation has now been handed over to the Swedish Prosecution Authority. 

The vessel is near Landhrona, Sweden which is north of Malmö where the other bulker grounded last week. Divers were sent down on Saturday evening, and they reported no visual damage but said most of the hull which measures 180 meters (590 feet) is on the sandy bottom. The Coast Guard reports the vessel has approximately 938,000 liters of oil and lubricants in its tanks.

The authorities are remaining on the scene but said as long as the vessel remains stable, the responsibilities rest with the shipowner, a company based in Dubai. They will need to develop a salvage plan and submit it for approval.

One similarity between the two vessels that grounded is that both have a history of deficiencies reported during port state inspections. The Meshka had 23 deficiencies during a September 2024 inspection at the British port of Immingham. UK authorities detained the ship for 18 days after identifying structural issues, fire safety problems, and crew training issues. The ship however had a clean inspection in May in Spain.

The other bulker, Ali Aykin remains aground on a shoal near the Øresund Bridge. Swedish authorities confirmed during the week that hull damage had been identified and that the ship had taken on water. A salvage plan is being prepared and reviewed for the ship.