Meuse river back to normal after successful salvage of sunken cargo ship

The Meuse River at Borgharen, on the north side of Maastricht, has reached the desired water level again. This means that ships can once again navigate the Juliana Canal between the Belgian town of Ternaaien and Urmond, reports Rijkswaterstaat. Shipping traffic had been blocked since Monday evening to free the cargo ship that hit the weir last Saturday and subsequently sank.

The ship was towed free on Friday afternoon. It was trapped under the gate valve of the weir, which was therefore unable to close. The 40-meter-long cargo ship collided with the weir last Saturday due to a very strong side current in the Meuse, a spokesman for the fire department told NOS. The ship sank after the collision. However, there was enough time to get the crew safely off the ship and no one was injured, the fire department reported.

The weir is now back in operation and the water level of the Meuse has risen again. At around 6 a.m. on Saturday, the first ships in Ternaaien were able to close again.

The cargo ship in question, the Humadivi sailing under the Belgian flag, is tied to a pontoon a short distance from the dam. The load of sand it was carrying had already been removed and the water was pumped out of the ship on Friday. According to a spokesperson for Rijkswaterstaat, they are currently considering what will happen to the Humadivi.

The damage to the weir does not appear to be too extensive. A drone was first examined and then the vessel was also pulled loose with the naked eye. “At the moment, the weir seems to be fine, but further investigations will follow,” the spokesman said. “In any case, the weir is working.”

Now that the water level is back up, the preventive measures in the area are being removed. The dam of rubble stones that was built behind the weir to prevent too much of the Maas water from flowing away, is being demolished. The mobile emergency barrier at the Bosscherveld lock, which was installed to protect a number of houseboats, will be pumped dry on Sunday and removed on Monday.