6,000 tons of rock to stabilize overturned ship in Georgia

Salvage of Golden Ray will be done in pieces
In this Sept. 9, 2019, file photo, rescuers work near the stern of the vessel Golden Ray as it lays on its side near the Moran tug boat Dorothy Moran in Jekyll Island, Ga. Truckloads of rocks are being transported to the Georgia coast to stabilize an overturned cargo ship until it can be removed in pieces.

Credit: Stephen B. Morton

Credit: Stephen B. Morton

In this Sept. 9, 2019, file photo, rescuers work near the stern of the vessel Golden Ray as it lays on its side near the Moran tug boat Dorothy Moran in Jekyll Island, Ga. Truckloads of rocks are being transported to the Georgia coast to stabilize an overturned cargo ship until it can be removed in pieces.

Truckloads of rocks are being transported to the Georgia coast to stabilize an overturned cargo ship until it can be removed in pieces.

The joint response team overseeing salvage of the Golden Ray said in a news release that 6,000 tons of rock will be placed along the hull of the ship to slow erosion of sand beneath it caused by the tides off St. Simons Island. The rock is being delivered by trucks from Georgia quarries and will be laid around the ship using barges.

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The vessel overturned Sept. 8 near the Port of Brunswick. Rescuers drilled into the hull and rescued four crewmen trapped in the ship.

Crews plan to haul the ship away in pieces, saying it cannot be safely righted and refloated intact.