The insurance company handling the grounding of the Baltic III at Cedar Cove near Lark Harbour has issued tenders for the next phase of salvage work at the site.

T & T Salvage has been working on the vessel since the container ship ran aground in February of last year, but its contract for the first phase of the work is coming to an end.

The Canadian Coast Guard is monitoring work at the site and spokesperson Bruce English says the most recent survey of the vessel shows that persistent storms are taking their toll on the vessel’s hull.

“Yeah, it has sustained a fair bit of damage,” says English who surveyed the vessel from a small boat late last week. “The buckling in the shell plating is more pronounced, and at the stern, she’s down a fair bit and tipped out to the port side. Those things haven’t changed since the last storm. Monday’s (Jan 12) storm didn’t seem to cause much effect. It’s sitting pretty solid on the bottom right now.”

The tender for the next round of salvage operations is expected to be awarded in the next month or so.