Australian icebreaker stuck in Antarctica
SHIPPING: The icebreaker Aurora Australis has been stuck in the ice about 55 miles off the Antarctic for two days. The vessel is on its way to the cold continent with 50 researchers on board. Wind from the north is responsible for the dense ice and the crew is waiting for winds from a southerly direction, which can cause the ice to break up and allow them to move on.
"At the moment they are in some very heavy ice, which is pretty normal in this kind of weather. They are unable to move on to the next station at the moment because of the way the ice is packed up around the ship", says Australian Antarktic division's operations manager Robb Clifton to AAP.
"The ship has plenty of fuel and plenty of food. It even produces drinking water and it is regularly away on raids a few months at a time. With a vessel sailing in these type of waters, you are accustomed to the fact that there are delays", says Clifton.
The ship was built in 1990 and is operated by P & O Maritime Services.
Source: Tradewinds
