The container ship MSC Emily Il was successfully recovered early last Friday as it drifted near Manora. Karachi Port Trust (KPT) tugs Lyari and Mithadar towed the drifting ship under the supervision of the authorities and the port master and docked in the safe area. Throughout the operation, KPT chairman Nadir Mumtaz Warraich watched the rescue operation on the deck of the tug Lyari.
The Liberian-flagged ship ran aground at noon on Thursday while coming to Karachi from Mundra Port in Gujarat, India. It was announced that the 184-meter-long ship had a rudder-related failure while entering the channel to berth and ran aground. The ship, which started to drift due to the tide, was rescued without any damage thanks to the new tugs of the KPT.
The tugs Lyari and Mithadar, built by Turkey’s UZMAR shipyard and delivered to KPT in December 2021, are the most powerful and equipped tugs in Karachi, along with Khardar and Keamari, which will arrive at Karachi Port at the end of January 2022.
With the contract signed in 2021, the 32-meter tugs, which were started to be built in UZMAR’s modern shipyard in Kocaeli Free Zone, were equipped with the latest technology equipment. Tugs, which are designed to successfully perform operations such as towing, backup, escort, as well as rescue, fire extinguishing, and sea cleaning, have been the most important investment made by KPT, Pakistan’s busiest port, to date.
The tugs that saved the Ever Given ship, which ran aground in 2021, causing the Suez Canal to remain closed and causing significant damage to the world economy, were also built by UZMAR Shipyard.