Last week, Smit reported that since the pumping commenced on the Costa Concordia, oil has been removed from all six forward tanks and the hoses, pumps and valves have been disconnected with the flanges sealed off.
Following the oil removal from the forward ship, the crane barge was disconnected and brought back into the sheltered port on Monday morning. The fuel tanker Elba into which the fuel was pumped has moved away from the Costa Concordia and a second fuel barge Magic Duba is standby to replace it.
Weather Unfavourable
Since Monday, the wind and wave conditions have hampered the continuation of the oil removal process. As soon as the weather permits, the crane barge will be repositioned alongside the Costa Concordia. Based on the current planning, the mid-ship tanks containing MGO and two double bottom sludge tanks will have the next priority. These tanks will also be emptied using the hot tap method. Due to the unpredictable weather conditions, we cannot provide an estimated date of completion.
