Clean-up crews have recovered the wreckage of three destroyed yachts after a fire caused the vessels to sink over a month ago at the Spit Marina, between Mosman and Seaforth.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a Clean-Up Notice on 10 January requiring d’Albora Marinas to carry out immediate and ongoing actions to assess, manage and remove pollution from the incident and develop a Salvage Plan to remove the fire damaged vessels.
It was confirmed the vessels still contained fuel within their fuel tanks; however, diver inspections confirmed that the tanks remained intact. Before the recovery, other precautions were put in place to prevent pollutants from escaping into surrounding waters, such as booms installed around the perimeter of the berth area.
d’Albora Marinas told Manly Observer their top priority was removing the vessels safely and to contain and minimise any pollution and manage environmental risks since the wreckages sank.
“The salvage operation is highly complex and requires specialist cranes, barges and divers, meaning additional time has been necessary to mobilise the required resources, and salvage of the vessels remains primarily the responsibility of the vessel owners and their insurers,” a representative of d’Albora said.
Under the terms of the notice, d’Albora were required to report to the EPA daily on monitoring results and the progress of other mandatory actions.
The fire occurred around 3.30am, 9 January. Four people managed to escape the blaze after the three large yachts went up in flames at the Marina. Over 40 Fire & Rescue NSW firefighters rushed to the scene, taking two and a half hours to extinguish the flames.
