Vera Su

On the 36th day of the shipwreck of the "Vera Su" near the Yailata area, it was successfully towed. The action lasted more than seven hours and involved three tugs. The goal is to tow the ship to the port of Varna. The entire nitrogen fertilizer load was pre-unloaded to avoid contamination of the marine ecosystem in the event of a water leak.

The inspection of the ship stranded near Kamen Bryag is expected to continue today. The engine compartment and the hull of the vessel are flooded, which complicates the operation of unloading nitrogen fertilizer. Also today, the photos taken by the two divers who boarded the "Vera Su" yesterday should be analyzed.

The Dobrich District Court has kept in custody the captain of the ship "Vera Su".

According to the court, a reasonable assumption can be made that he was involved in the crime for which he is accused and is in danger of absconding, given that he is a foreign citizen and does not have a permanent address in Bulgaria.

Charges will be brought against the captain and assistant captain of the wrecked ship 'Vera Su', the Dobrich District Prosecutor's Office announced after the interrogations of the evacuated sailors held today.

The two will be detained for 72 hours after their interrogations are over. After that, their permanent detention will be requested.

The partial state of emergency on the territory of the protected area Yaylata on the Bulgarian Black Sea coast has been extended by one month. The order for this is in connection with the crisis related to the cargo ship Vera Su stranded 17 days ago there and the measures to protect the life and safety of the ship's crew.

Today, three barges are expected to arrive to begin unloading the stranded Vera Su. However, the ship's crew has so far refused to leave the ship, "24 Hours" daily reported.

Some of the fuel on the ship stranded near Kamen Bryag was drained from its tanks.

The amount remaining in the tanks is necessary for the operation of the ship's systems. Yesterday, divers who checked the condition of the ship  stated unofficially that the ship "Vera Su" could not sink anymore because the shallows of the sea are 6 to 8 meters deep.

A drone of the Naval School "Nikola Yonkov Vaptsarov" monitors from the sky the ship Vera Su stranded near Kamen Bryag, the Ministry of Defense announced.

The Maritime School is part of an interdepartmental team formed to reduce potential risks and release the vessel, the ministry said.

I will ask the prosecutor's office to investigate a crime against the environment, Bulgaria's caretaker Minister of Environment and Water Asen Lichev said with regard to the "Vera Su" case. We are talking about two crises - administrative and environmental, Minister Lichev added.

A task force has been established to coordinate the unloading of a Panamanian-flagged ship with fertilizers, that ran into cliffs in the Black Sea off the coast of Northern Bulgaria and is threatening to cause a major pollution of the sea water.

The decision for the task force was announced by Transport Minister Hristo Alexiev after the government's weekly meeting Wednesday.