The following is the text of a press release issued by the U.S. Coast Guard:
(MIAMI) — Coast Guard Sector Miami personnel and marine salvage contractors are making arrangements to remove a 279-foot freighter aground near Government Cut, in Miami, Thursday.
Salvage crews plan to dewater the freighter, Island Intrepid, before high-tide Thursday, when tug boats are scheduled to attempt to remove it from its current position.
Government Cut is still open to inbound and outbound traffic, however, mariners are asked to proceed with caution and produce no wake while transiting the area. Government Cut is scheduled to close to maritime traffic from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. for removal operations.
The St. Vincent and the Grenadines flagged ship, Island Intrepid, was transiting Government Cut while en route the Port of Miami Wednesday, when the ship reportedly suffered a steering casualty and ran aground.
As a preventative measure, crews set approximately 1200-feet of boom around the Island Intrepid. There are no reports of pollution with the exception of a slight sheen off the stern, which is being contained by the deployed boom.
