Cougar Ace righted and waiting for Coast Guard approval to head to Portland, Oregon; most cars salvageable

8/26/06

Anchorage, Alaska

Salvage crews have righted the Cougar Ace, the car carrier ship that was listing severely 230 miles south of the Aleutians, and are waiting for Coast Guard approval to tow it to Portland, Oregon.

The Coast Guard says it could be ready to leave Sunday or a couple of days after that.

The Cougar Ace keeled over onto its port side July 23 as the crew was attempting to adjust the ballast water at sea . The ship listed up to 80 degrees at one point.

Twenty-three crew members had to be rescued after a daring and difficult rescue by the Coast Guard. Later while surveying the ship, a naval architect died when he slipped and hit his head while on the then-sideways ship.

The ship has been moored at Icicle Seafoods' buoys in Wide Bay, northwest of Dutch Harbor, Alaska since tugs pulled it in August 8th.

The vehicles onboard did not tumble or crash when the ship listed, the Coast Guard said. Each was secured to the ship with a "single point device", according to Mazda.

But as far as the Coast Guard could determine, "there was minimal damage to the cars,". Some seawater seeped in around the wheels of some vehicles, but generally the ship was watertight.