A small crowd gathered by the water in Wisbech last night to see a cargo ship finally freed from a river bank where it had been grounded for much of the day.
Clearly the spectators decided it was a mor enjoyable spectacle than watching what turned out to be another dismal England Euro goalless draw.
Just before 10pm the Baltic Arrow, a 22-year-old and 80-meter-long ship, was pulled clear, and the Nene once again was cleared for cargo shipping to enter and leave the port of Wisbech.
Sailing under the flag of the Caribbean islands of St Kitts & Nevis, the ship, with timber from Latvia due to be unloaded at Wisbech, simply got stuck as it approached its final destination.
And there it stayed throughout the day, waiting for high water to enable it to be brought into the port.
If nothing else it has served to publicise the fact that Wisbech Port and Yacht Harbour is Cambridgeshire’s only gateway to the sea.
Fenland District Council says that only does Wisbech remain a busy commercial port, the development of the Cross Keys Marina at Sutton Bridge and association moorings have made Wisbech an increasingly important mooring location to explore the inland waterways of the Wash.
“Despite Fenland not being on the coast, we are the statutory harbour authority for most of the tidal River Nene,” says the council’s website.
GALLERY: Baltic Arrow waiting for the tide to turn at Wisbech to be freed
“As well as owning and operating the Port and Yacht Harbour, we provide a port health service to commercial ships, leisure vessels and fishing vessels.”
The council and port authorities will now want more details of yesterday’s incident and will seek reassurance it won’t happen again.
A spokesperson from Wisbech Port told the BBC that a full investigation will be carried out to find out why it grounded.
They said: “Since tide has fallen away, plan is to wait until vessel is afloat at next high water to free her from banks with additional tug assistance and continue her pilotage safely into Wisbech Port.
“This is a rare situation to happen at Wisbech.”
