Istanbul court issues seizure warrant for ship that crashed into historical mansion

Dinçer Gökçe – ISTANBUL

An Istanbul court has issued a warrant for the seizure of a ship that crashed into a waterfront mansion on the Bosphorus on April 7.

The ruling came after the owners of the Hekimbaşı Salih Efendi mansion applied to the Istanbul 17th Commercial Court of First Instance on April 9, demanding a lien to be enforced after their mansion was left with extensive damage. In their application, the owners noted the mansion had lost its historical status as a result of the crash.

The owners have also indicated that reconstruction of the mansion was subject to permission from the Council of Monuments and its reconstruction would “cost at least $40-50 million.”

The court then authorized the Maltese tanker Vitaspirit to be seized against the costs, specifying that the lien shall continue until the mansion’s owners are paid $50 million.

“For now, a seizure warrant has been ruled for the ship related to the $50 million [cost]. Currently, the relevant notices are being made to the port authority and coastal safety authorities for the seizure of the ship. The work to determine the extent of the damage is ongoing” said lawyers Nazlı Selek and Erdal Gökçe on behalf of the mansion owners.

The Bosphorus is one of the busiest shipping lanes in the world. In 2017, 42,000 military, naval and commercial vessels passed through the strait.

In 2017, there were a total of 127 incidents in the Bosphorus that almost resulted in a big crash, like that of the tanker Vitaspirit, but were “avoided with little or no harm,” and therefore, the public had not been informed of them, according to the Marine Safety Foundation.

“These [127 incidents] include crashing, touching, running aground, mechanical faults. Based on this, there is a narrow escape from an accident in the Bosphorus every three days,” said a statement issued by the foundation, state-run Anadolu Agency reported on April 10.</s>The mansion – which has stood since the 18th century – had its roof and upper floors collapse after the accident but there were no reported casualties.

Staff and diners inside the building are seen fleeing in panic.

It then hurtles towards the historic waterfront mansion of Hekimbasi Salih Efendi.

The heart-stopping footage shows the colossal vessel losing control in Istanbul’s Bosphorus strait, Turkey, yesterday.

Traffic on the strait was suspended in both directions after the crash, blocking the maritime travel route that carries more than 3% of the global oil supply.

According to state officials, the massive tanker lost control after its steering equipment became locked.

The Malta-flagged Vitaspirit tanker – carrying 62 tons of dough from Russia to Saudi Arabia – was pulled back from the crash site.</s>ISTANBUL (AP) — A cargo ship has crashed into a historic mansion on Istanbul's Bosporus strait, severely damaging the building.

Turkey's official Anadolu news agency said the Maltese-flagged cargo ship had a malfunction Saturday that disabled its rudder and caused it to lose control in the busy waterway.

Videos showed the large ship sailing straight toward the Asian shores of Istanbul, hitting the red seaside mansion of Hekimbasi Salih Efendi. No one was injured.

Anadolu said the 225-meter (738-foot) ship was carrying barley from Russia to Saudi Arabia.

The mansion once belonged to a doctor who served in the Ottoman palace and dates back to the 18th century.

The Bosporus is a key waterway connecting the Black Sea with the Sea of Marmara and then the Aegean Sea.</s>This is the shocking moment a tanker crashed into an 18th century coastal mansion, causing heavy damage to the waterfront property.

The vessel, which had a Maltese flag, was carrying barley from Russia to Saudi Arabia when technical malfunctions caused it to veer off course and slam into the historic mansion on the Bosphorus Strait in Istanbul.

The footage showed it smashing into the Hekimbasi Salih Efendi Mansion on the eastern shore before becoming stuck under the Second Bosphorus Bridge.

The entire incident was filmed from multiple angles by onlookers, who later shared it on social media.

One video showed people fleeing in terror from a building next door to the mansion as the vessel sped towards them.

The crash happened shortly after 3pm local time on Saturday, after the large tanker called 'Vitaspirit' entered the Bosphorus Strait from the Black Sea.

According to reports, the tanker was sailing through the narrow waterway that connects Europe and Asia and suddenly experienced engine and steering mechanism problems.

After losing control of the 225-metre vessel, the crew desperately tried to slow it down by throwing its anchor overboard, however they were unable to stop it smashing into the mansion.

The tanker was reportedly carrying 62 tons of barley.

The property has stood on the shores of the Bosphorus Strait since the 18th century and is used to host weddings and concerts, according to the mansion's website.

Despite the horror crash, no casualties have been reported while the Bosphorus was closed to all traffic in both directions.

The Bosphorus is one of the world's most important choke points for maritime oil transports, with more than 3 percent of global supply - mainly from Russia and the Caspian Sea - passing through the 17-mile waterway connecting the Black Sea to the Mediterranean.

It is also used by vessels carrying grain from Russia and Kazakhstan to international markets.</s>ISTANBUL - A cargo vessel crossing through the Bosphorus in Istanbul crashed into a waterside mansion on Saturday due to a technical fault, crushing the fragile wooden building.

The Maltese-flagged Vitaspirit lost control and ploughed into the edifice. The building’s roof and upper floors collapsed and television pictures showed the basement slumping into the water.

Such waterside mansions, known as yalis in Turkish, are among the most historic and expensive properties on the waterway that runs through Istanbul and divides Europe and Asia.

The Deniz Haber maritime news agency said that 225 metre (740 foot) Vitaspirit, which was heading from Egypt to Ukraine, lost control due to a technical fault with its engines.

Images showed the stricken vessel ramming the mansion on the Asian side of the Bosphorus with the tip of its bow, sending a cloud of dust and rubble into the air as the building collapsed.

The vessel was extracted from the mansion with the help of tugs but the Bosphorus was closed to shipping traffic in both directions, NTV television said. There were no casualties in the collision.

The wooden Hekimbasi Salih Efendi mansion was built by Ottoman nobles in the 19th century. It had no permanent residents but was rented out for marriage ceremonies or concerts.

The Bosphorus is one of the busiest shipping lanes in the world and in 2017 it was transited by some 42,000 military, naval and commercial vessels.

The government says the risk of such accidents shows the need to build its planned and hugely controversial new canal for Istanbul that would take the shipping traffic and lessen the pressure on the Bosphorus.

Cem Devrim Yaylali, an Istanbul-based Turkish naval expert and editor of the Bosphorus Naval News website, said there was always a risk of such an incident in the Bosphorus but it should be avoided.

“The risk is there but it is manageable if all parts of the system work as they should,” he told AFP.

“That means the Vessel Traffic Service (traffic control for the ships), the pilots and the ships’ crew and machinery need to work as advertised,” he said.

There has been a litany of shipping accidents in the last decades in the Bosphorus although far fewer in recent years as safety standards and technology improved.

One of the worst was the deadly December 1960 collision between the Yugoslav-flagged tanker Petar Zoranic and the Greek vessel World Harmony that caused a fire which lasted for weeks.

Turkish Nobel prize-winning author Orhan Pamuk famously recounts in his 2003 memoir “Istanbul: Memories and the City” the 1963 ramming of a Soviet vessel into the living room of a sleeping Istanbul family.</s>Footage captured the terrifying moment a giant cargo tanker smashed into a historic waterfront mansion with a devastating effect.

The video captured the massive ship as it hurtled towards Istanbul’s Bosphorus strait in Turkey.

The crash was filmed from inside a restaurant situated on the waterfront.

As the ship sailed straight for the harbour, staff and dinners inside the restaurant manically run out of the way.

At first glance, it looks as though the cargo ship is going to smash straight into the restaurant.</s>As the container shipping industry continues to boom, companies are adopting new technologies to move cargo faster and shifting to crewless ships. But it’s not all been smooth sailing and the future will see fewer players stay above water.

How a Steel Box Changed the World: A Brief History of Shipping 4:05

A CARGO ship has crashed into a historic mansion on Istanbul’s Bosporus strait, severely damaging the building.

Turkey’s official Anadolu news agency said the Maltese-flagged cargo ship had a malfunction on Saturday that disabled its rudder and caused it to lose control in the busy waterway.

Videos showed the large ship sailing straight toward the Asian shores of Istanbul, hitting the red seaside mansion of Hekimbasi Salih Efendi, over the weekend. No one was injured.

Anadolu said the 225-metre ship was carrying barley from Russia to Saudi Arabia. The mansion once belonged to a doctor who served in the Ottoman palace and dates back to the 18th century.

The Bosporus is a key waterway connecting the Black Sea with the Sea of Marmara and then the Aegean Sea.
A court in Istanbul issues a warrant for the seizure of MV Vitaspirit, a Maltese tanker that crashed into a historic waterfront mansion on the Bosphorus on April 7, until the mansion's owners receive US$50 million.