A containment boom deployment training exercise ahead of moving a rig which had grounded on the Scottish coast has been postponed for at least two days due to windy weather, according to the UK's Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA).
The training using Briggs Environmental vessel Forth Drummer was due to start at 1 p.m. yesterday, in the location of the Transocean Winner at Broad Bay, on the Isle of Lewis.
It was due to see 200m of containment boom deployed. The exercise which is designed to confirm to Briggs personnel response timings, in advance of operations transferring the Transocean Winner onto the OHT Hawk – the Norwegian operated semisubmersible heavy transport vessel, which is due to transport the rig to Turkey and is currently at anchor just off the Isle of Lewis.
The Transocean Winner grounded at Dalmore Bay on the Isle of Lewis, off the Scottish mainland, early on 8 August, after parting from the tug Alp Forward that was towing it from Stavanger to Malta amid high winds. It was later moved to Broad Bay, on the east coast of the Isle of Lewis, where it is connected to eight anchors.
A Temporary Exclusion Zone (TEZ) of 1000m is still in place around the Transocean Winner’s current position in Broad Bay and will remain in place to minimize any risk to safety for other craft using the area. It also provides a safe working environment for divers and the numerous surface vessels supporting the ongoing salvage operation.
An additional TEZ will be established around the position of the OHT Hawk during the loading operations.
Image: The Transocean Winner, while grounded in Dalmore Bay. Photo from MCA.
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