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Volunteers to be involved in nurdle removal
After the spill of about 17 tons nurdles from the 'BG Orange', the community prepared to help with the clean up operation. Matt Beeton, the Port of Tyne’s CEO, revealed the scale of the disaster on Aug 5, having completed the first phase of the salvage operation. He explained that the Port didn’t know about the nurdles until the afternoon of July 20. Staff worked to prevent another 58 tonnes from entering the river. The 'Wind Ocra' had damaged one container, and two were ripped open. Each box contained 25 tonnes of nurdles, and out of the two that were ripped open, 33 tonnes were recovered, and another 25 tonnes prevented from going into the river with Ambipar and Swiftwater Solutions. Earlier this week, campaigners called on the Port to allow volunteers to help with the clean up operation. Now that the phase one of securing the damaged ship and containers was complete, the second phase was entered, where volunteers were wanted on the river. They have to be mariners, experienced and the work has to be done in a controlled manner to ensure people’s safety. The harbour master has created a schedule of times and areas that were safe for the public to help with the clean up. Out of the 17 tonnes of nurdles that entered the water, the Port of Tyne stated that it has removed around 10 tonnes, with that total not including what has been removed from North East beaches. Report with photos: https://www.shieldsgazette.com/news/port-of-tyne-chief-reveals-it-took-five-seconds-to-spill-17-tonnes-of-nurdles-in-south-shields-8840828
Collapsed boom removed
Salvage crews have lifted the boom of the collapsed STS crane from the 'BG Orange', as recovery work continued in the Port of Tyne. The boom had remained resting across the vessel since the offshore support ship 'Wind Orca' struck the berthed 'BG Orange', causing the crane to collapse. Thw Resolve Marine was appointed to carry out the complex recovery operation, which involved cutting the crane boom into sections before removing it from the container ship. Using the floating crane 'Matador 3', operated by Bonn & Mees, which arrived at the port on July 29, salvage teams lifted the boom from the ship before separating it from the main crane structure, the Port of Tyne said in an update. The boom was thrn transferred to the quayside where it will be cut into smaller pieces. With the boom removed, thd 'BG Orange' was moved into the River Tyne, rotated and reberthed with its damaged side alongside the quay in order to allow surveyors to assess the extent of the damage. Five damaged containers were also removed as part of the ongoing recovery operation. The operation took over 10 hours to complete, following extensive planning with salvage experts and the vessel owners. Report with photos and video: https://www.worldcargonews.com/news/2026/07/collapsed-crane-boom-removed-from-bg-orange-at-port-of-tyne/?gdpr=accept
Container ship to be shifted away from berth - River Tyne to be closed for salvage works
Plans were underway to move the 'BG Orange' from the berth at the Port of Tyne, where it has remained for more than a week after a quay crane to topple onto the vessel on July 19, when the heavy-lift vessel 'Wind Orca struck' the berthed container ship, causing it to shift and the collapse of a Liebherr STS crane. The crane’s boom collapsed onto the accommodation block, leaving part of the STS crane structure resting on the vessel. The River Tyne will close to all vessels for nine hours on July 31 as salvage operations go ahead. The stretch between Royal Quays and the River Don will be closed from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. due to salvage works at the Tyne Container Terminal. The Port of Tye has initiated emergency response measures to collect nurdles lost from two containers that split open and spilt plastic pellets into the River Tyne. The damaged containers were secured inside a scaffolding frame and enclosed before an industrial vacuum was used to remove the nurdles. A specialist team arrived at the port over the weekend to carry out the operation. A third damaged container, which also contained plastic pellets, was not currently leaking. The salvage company Resolve Marine has been appointed to carry out the complex recovery operation, during which the crane boom has to be cut into sections before it can be removed from the container ship. Recovery operations have also continued along the river. At the North Shields Ferry terminal, crews used flushing techniques to free stranded pellets before collecting them, while a containment boom has been installed at the Jarrow Bridge on the River Don. Planning is also progressing for the removal of debris on land, including the collapsed 750-tonne gantry crane, part of which remained in contact with the 'BG Orange'. Reports with photos: https://www.worldcargonews.com/news/2026/07/port-of-tyne-prepares-relocation-of-bg-orange-after-crane-collapse/?gdpr=accept https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/north-east-news/river-tyne-closed-crane-collapse-34368241
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