Iconic sail training ship STS Leeuwin left in ruins after container ship smashed into it

Two men jumped from the STS Leeuwin onto the dock at Fremantle harbour in early morning gloom after a container vessel smashed into the iconic WA tall ship. The terrifying collision in driving rain just after 6am on Friday left the Leeuwin a mangled mess after the Maersk Shekou slammed into the vessel. The men had been below deck on the Leeuwin and came onto the deck as the Maersk made contact, and then leapt to safety. On Friday afternoon a man in his 20s remained in Royal Perth Hospital in a stable condition with an arm injury. Earlier in the day it was thought to have been broken. Another man in his 60s was set to be discharged from Fiona Stanley Hospital. It is believed he had a minor head injury. The container vessel also hit the roof of the WA Maritime Museum and damaged the port. Dramatic vision of the incident showed the bow of the massive container ship moving through the inner harbour. A person filming the scene let out an expletive and shortly afterwards what sounded like metal on metal was audible, followed by the sounding of a horn. The Singapore-flagged Maersk Shekou, built in 2010, is 332m long with a beam of 43m. It has a gross tonnage of 94,407 tons. And it’s port side now carries a long gash. The WA-built STS Leeuwin II, launched in 1986, is 55m long with a beam of nine metres. It was smashed to pieces, its three masts shunted aside and left at crazy angles, and the deck was left a mess of splintered and shredded rigging. Jay Weatherill, Leeuwin Ocean Adventure Foundation chairman, said the two crew members on the vessel at the time of the collision “heard the damage as the ship collided with the Leeuwin.” “Their injuries were sustained in seeking to get off the vessel,” Mr Weatherill said. “There is some pretty major trauma about the experience.” Fremantle Ports said that as per standard operating procedures, the Shekou had two pilots on board and was accompanied by four tugs. The bow of the Shekou struck the Leeuwin first, then the stern of the vessel hit A Berth and the maritime museum roof. “During this impact the hull of the Shekou was damaged,” the statement said. The cause of the incident was not yet known, the port said. But witnesses earlier told of poor weather as the Maersk tried to berth, with a possible big wind gust pushing the vessel into the Leeuwin. A port worker — who did not wish to be named — watched the Maersk as it came into berth in the storm. “The Leeuwin was obscured but the ship seemed to be battling for about 40 minutes,” the worker said. A witness said he was on his way to Rottnest Island when he noticed all the commotion in the port. “The Leeuwin has been absolutely smashed to pieces,” he said. “None of its mast is standing and it’s listing over and hanging over onto the port. “That container ship has come into the port and smashed into the Leeuwin. “They’ve dropped the anchor to try and halt it and now they can’t get the anchor back up. It must be lodged on the bottom.” The Australian Maritime Safety Authority is leading the probe into the cause of the accident and its investigators boarded the Maersk Shekou on Friday. Fremantle Ports spokesman Neil Stanbury said areas likely to be considered included the condition of the Maersk Shekou, planning for its movements, the action of the pilots, the ship’s master and crew, the tugs and the weather at the time. Mr Weatherill struck an optimistic note about the Leeuwin. “The Leeuwin has been helping the youth of Western Australia for more than 35 years and remains a community-based volunteer driven organisation,” he said. “The Leeuwin has sailed roughed seas over these years and we hope it will return to the service of the youth of WA as soon as possible.” The incident was the latest blow to hit the vessel’s operation. In March the company behind the STS Leeuwin II came out of administration after a multimillion-dollar cash injection and a new board. It was buoyed by a $3.5 million grant from Andrew and Nicola Forrest’s Minderoo Foundation — and it was expected that there would be support by funding from the Department of Communities, the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development and Fremantle Ports. The vessel — the brainchild of Perth orthopaedic surgeon Malcolm Hay — was launched in August 1986 in the South Coogee shipyard of Australian Shipbuilding Industries. It was financed by the Commonwealth and State governments through the Australian Bicentennial Authority, Barrack House Group, the Public Education Endowment Trust and Perth Building Society. The Leeuwin took 22 months to build and was built upside down because it was easier to weld facing down than facing up. The first sail training voyage took place in March 1987, to Albany and Esperance, where it ran into a storm offering an early insight into the vessel’s challenges and opportunities. The vessel has given tens of thousands of young people opportunities to experience an ocean adventure, and has been cited as a catalyst for positive change in young people’s lives as they took on challenges such as climbing masts and handling sails while overcoming fears, acting as part of a team and learning leadership skills.