Cargo ship stuck in the Humber refloated

A cargo ship that was stuck on a sandbank in the Humber Estuary has been successfully refloated.

H&S Wisdom became lodged on a sandbank on 2 March and was waiting for suitable tide conditions to free it from the bank.

The crew had offloaded thousands of tonnes of cargo after several attempts to refloat the large vessel failed.

Humber Rescue said the vessel was refloated at about 19:00 GMT on Saturday, "after careful coordination and determined efforts".

The vessel became stuck near Brough as it made its way to Gunness Wharf Port near Scunthorpe.

Cranes were used to remove a large quantity of steel from the vessel which refloated without any intervention when the tide came in.

Humber Rescue, which has been supporting the operation, said: "Since Thursday, our crew has been assisting with the transfer of surveyors to and from the vessel.

"The crew aboard the H&S Wisdom has worked tirelessly to offload cargo, giving the vessel the best possible chance of refloating."

Several bystanders gathered on the bank in the dark to watch it float off.

One woman told the BBC: "When we're older, we'll say 'Do you remember when that boat got stuck on the Humber? We were there when they got it off'."

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