The 443-foot-long vessel was sailing on Norway’s Trondheim Fjord when it ran aground.
It certainly was a rude awakening.
Johan Helberg was fast asleep in the early hours of Thursday when a huge container ship crashed into his garden, narrowly missing his home on the bank of Norway’s Trondheim Fjord.
“I went to the window and was quite astonished to see a big ship,” Helberg told the Norwegian broadcaster TV2, adding, “I had to bend my neck to see the top of it. It was so unreal.”
The 442-foot-long NCL Salten was sailing to the western city of Orkanger when it went off course and ran aground in Helberg’s yard at around 5 a.m. local time (11 p.m. ET).
Just a few feet “further south, and it would have entered the bedroom,” Helberg said in a separate interview with NRK, Norway’s public broadcaster.
He added that he was only alerted to the commotion by his neighbor Jostein Jorgensen, who was startled awake by the sound of the ship as it raced toward the shore.
“I was sure that he was already outside but no, there was no sign of life. I rang the doorbell many times and nothing,” Jorgensen told TV2. “It was only when I called him on the phone that I managed to contact him,” he added.
Norwegian police are investigating what caused the incident and have identified one suspect on board, a spokesperson for Trøndelag police district told NRK.
There were no reports of injuries or oil spills.
The North Sea Container Line (NCL), the shipping company that chartered the ship, said in a press release Friday that a rescue operation was ongoing, adding that its highest priority was to ensure a safe and secure salvage operation.
“We are grateful that no one was injured in connection with yesterday’s grounding, and that everyone is safe — both on land where the ship grounded and on board,” it said.
“We are aware of the police stating that they have one suspect, and we continue to assist the police and authorities in their ongoing investigation,” it added. “We are also conducting internal inquiries but prefer not to speculate further.”
An initial attempt by the Norwegian Coastal Administration to pull it back into the sea failed. NCL said in an update that another attempt would only take place Friday. It was unclear if that succeeded.
Helberg, meanwhile, said that large ships often pass by his home, but they usually stay within the deeper waters of the fjord rather than his yard.
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NBC News
