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<< Previous   of   Next >>   ADVERTISEMENT   CONTACT THE HERALD Do you have a news tip? newstips@heraldnet.com | 425.339.3400   Published: Friday, May 16, 2008 Ship may finally be removed from Oregon beach Associated Press COOS BAY, Ore. -- Winter storms may have made removal of the last of the wreckage of the New Carissa from the beach where it ran aground nearly a decade ago a little easier. Phil Reed, director of engineering for Florida-based Titan Salvage, said Wednesday that 10 percent to 15 percent of the ship appears stuck in the sand now instead of the 20 percent to 30 percent previously estimated. Titan owner and founder David Parrot said storms that turned up old shipwrecks and a pair of 19th century cannons last winter chewed away at the sand around the rusting stern section of the beached freighter. "At low tide, we were able to walk right up to the engine room," Parrot said. "It's possible as the sand on the beach has moved seaward, some of the sand on the wreck has gone through." Parrot's salvage crew has nearly finished assembling the two jack-up barges that will moor on two sides of the wreck and serve as platforms for cranes, hydraulic pullers and construction workers to cut up the remains of the New Carissa. Six giant platform legs then will be moved to the wreck, where they will be buried 30 feet into the sand to lift the platforms out of the pounding surf. Crews will use the platforms to rig hydraulic systems to pull the 1,200-ton stern slowly out of the sand, which adds an unknown amount of weight to the wreckage. If the remaining wreck cannot be freed, Titan crews will have to cut the ship off at the sand line and leave the rest. The salvage company and state officials are expecting big crowds this summer for the $16.4 million project. The New Carissa ran aground on Feb. 4, 1999, while waiting to enter Coos Bay. The ship broke apart, spilling an estimated 70,000 to 140,000 gallons of fuel oil. While the bow was being towed out to sea, a towline broke, causing the bow to drift north and run aground at Waldport before finally freed and sunk far at sea by a Navy torpedo "It's going to be like running two stores," said Rich Burkholder, owner of Spinreel Dune Buggy and ATV Rentals. The rental company does most of its business on the beach or nearby dunes, but it plans to dedicate vehicles to tours of the New Carissa salvage work. "We're getting a little stretched out, but I think it's going to be worth it," Burkholder said.

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