MV COMMANDER

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Rudder loss in grounding

The "Commander" was successfully refloated and anchored in the vicinity of Protestant Cay Feb. 1, 2014, after the ship grounded on the Round Reef just outside Christiansted Harbor on Jan 31. The Coast Guard Sector San Juan and Resident Inspection Office St. Croixstarted investigating the cause of the grounding and an initial underwater assessment survey has identified two missing rudders, minor scraping and no major damage to the ship’s hull or any signs of pollution leaking from the vessel. The "Commander" was safely anchored in the vicinity of Protestant Cay in Christiansted. The Coast Guard Sector San Juan had received initial notification of the incident Friday night from the U.S. Virgin Islands Department of Natural Resources (DPNR), Division of Environmental Enforcement, who along with the Virgin Islands Police Department’s marine unit were the first responding agencies on scene. Coast Guard Resident Inspection Office and Boat Forces St. Croix personnel immediately responded to the scene and worked with the master and owner of the "Commander" for them to provide a vessel salvage plan that would minimize the environmental impact during the refloating and removal of the ship. Following high tide and favorable weather conditions in the afternoon of Feb 1 the vessel was able to refloat, free itself from the reef and safely anchor in the vicinity of Protestant Cay. The PNRs’ Division of Fish and Wildlife assessed any damage to corals and fisheries habitats, while DPNR’s Divi Report with photo: http://www.uscgnews.com/go/doc/4007/2084162/Coast-Guard-assesses-the-condition-of-a-221-foot-MV-Commander-after-grounding-and-refloating-from-a-reef-in-Christiansted-St-Croix#sthash.N9AquNvS.dpuf