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Britain must act now over an explosive-laden

December, 31, 2024-02:27

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Britain must act now over an explosive-laden:

Britain must act now over an explosive-laden 'doomsday wreck' that threatens to unleash a tsunami in the Thames, experts have warned.

The SS Richard Montgomery sank in the Thames Estuary near Sheerness, Kent, in August 1944, taking some 1,400 tons of WW2 explosives to the bottom. Her masts still loom above the water line, and plans are in place to remove them, lest they collapse on to the wreck and trigger an explosion – but experts say it's not enough. With a new survey revealing the main body of the ship is collapsing, the government has been urged to go further, and remove the bombs themselves before it's too late.

Professor David Alexander of University College London (UCL) authored a study about the threat of the wreck, and believes removing the masts is insufficient.
He said: 'I don't think that's going to solve the problem.

'Probably the biggest risk is shipping runs into it. 'The exclusion zone is 200 meters from a major shipping lane through which large container ships pass and, much more seriously, liquefied natural gas ships. 'These are five stories high, and contain enormous tanks of liquefied natural gas.' He cited the example of the Mare Alum, a Danish-flagged chemical tanker that was on a collision course with the wreck when it was diverted with only minutes to spare.

It was one of two near-misses within a single week in May 1980, coming just days after the British-registered MV Fletching came within 15 meters of the wreck.