A 400-metre-long container ship has run aground off the coast of Germany, the nation's Central Command for Maritime Emergencies said on Thursday.
The Danish-flagged vessel, Mumbai Maersk, is situated around six kilometres north of the East Frisian Island of Wangerooge, where it got stuck at 11:05 pm (local time) on Wednesday as it headed from Rotterdam to Bremerhaven, a statement from the agency said.
The operation to free the ship began overnight, with several tugboats and multipurpose vessels dispatched to the scene. A team of specially trained seafarers was also brought on board.
A first attempt to bring the container ship back into deeper water failed, a spokesperson for the command said.
"Fortunately, there are no injured persons. Everyone is well," he said.
Waiting for the tide
The operation to salvage the ship depends on the tide. "We would like to start now, but we have to wait for the highest water level," the spokesperson explained.
The next high tide will be at around 1 pm.
There was a similar incident at the weekend off the East Frisian coast, when an unloaded freighter got into trouble during a powerful storm. In the end, it was able to continue its journey to Denmark without additional assistance.
