From typicallyspanish.com
Cádiz ecologists want explanation of New Flame recovery strategy
By m.p.
Mar 11, 2008 - 11:06 AM
Ecologists in Cádiz province have asked for explanations on the recovery operation for the New Flame, the stricken cargo ship which has been lying off Europa Point in Gibraltar after colliding with a tanker last August. The ship sank further below the waves in bad weather last month, with the stern section now lying on the seabed and just the New Flame’s funnel, the aft mast and its navigation bridge now visible above the surface.
Speaking to Europa Press, Antonio Muñoz, spokesman for Verdemar-Ecologistas en Acción, said he believes it will be close to impossible to carry out the plan of cutting the stern section away, which he says is ‘submerged and flooded on the seabed.’ He believes a new strategy is needed for the recovery operation, and also noted that the exact nature of the ship’s cargo of 42,000 tons of scrap metal has not been released.
Spain’s Foreign Ministry made a second request to the UK last week for explanations on the Gibraltar government’s handling of the recovery operation.