High winds and rough seas stall bid to salvage ship grounded off western Newfoundland

The cargo ship MSC Baltic III is shown grounded in this undated handout photo. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO-Fisheries and Oceans Canada *MANDATORY CREDIT *

LARK HARBOUR, N.L. — Rough weather forced salvage specialists to abandon their inspection today of a cargo ship that ran aground in a rocky cove along Newfoundland’s west coast on the weekend.

A Canadian Coast Guard spokesman says Texas-based T&T Salvage has been tasked with drafting a plan to get the 207-metre MSC Baltic III off the rocks before it breaks up.

The ship had a crew of 20 aboard when its lost power in heavy seas, drifted outside the entrance to Bay of Islands and then hit bottom at the edge of Cedar Cove, near Lark Harbour.

Despite powerful gusts, the crew aboard a Cormorant search-and-rescue helicopter safely airlifted everyone from the vessel on Saturday.

Bruce English, a response officer with the coast guard’s marine environmental and hazardous response team, says there was no sign today of any fuel or oil spilling from the vessel, but the ship’s hull appears to have sustained some damage.

English says the four-man team of salvage experts must assess the structural integrity of the ship before they can make a plan about moving it or removing cargo and the marine diesel used to power the ship.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 18, 2025.

The Canadian Press