Ship Scavengers Could Face Court

Scavengers heading to the Devon coast in the hope of picking up goods wrecked from the Napoli container ship have been warned that they could end up in court.

Dozens of people flocked to beaches close to the vessel where containers have washed ashore, scattering a bizarre array of goods along the shoreline.

The huge sea vessel was carrying goods as diverse as barrels of wine, car parts, haircare products and even nappies.

Onlookers could be seen on Monday picking over the spilled contents of bright yellow containers at Branscombe Beach, near Seaton.

One enterprising group used a tractor to carry a new BMW motorbike, still partially-wrapped in cardboard, from one beach.

Sophia Exelby, of the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA), who is the 'receiver of wreck', said those who fail to report any goods could be fined up to £2,500.

She said: "The legal position is that anything which is washed ashore is 'wreck' and that still belongs to the wreck owner.

"In the first instance they are arranging their own recovery operation and are requesting that people stay away.

"If anybody has already made recoveries from the wreck they are obliged by law to report to the recoverer of wreck.

"Failing to do so is a criminal offence, effectively they are stealing from the owners. The fine is up to £2,500 per offence."

Police warned today that they will search properties and arrest those who fail to report items they have scavenged from a Devon beach.

Robin Middleton, the government's head of salvage, condemned the "abysmal behaviour" of hundreds of people who descended on Branscombe beach and opened sealed containers washed ashore from the MSC Napoli ship, which was grounded a mile off Sidmouth at the weekend.

Amid mounting criticism of the police and various maritime agencies for failing to stop looters from taking thousands of pounds worth of property, authorities said a private security company brought in by the salvage company would enforce the closure of the beach.

New BMW motorbikes and engine parts have been removed by "beachcombers" and one Swedish woman watched on television as people rifled through a container holding family heirlooms being sent to their new home in South Africa.

Mark Rodaway, the acting receiver of wreck for the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA), told a press conference that children had been left unsupervised on the beach last night during gales as parents scoured property and opened sealed containers.

"Frankly, the scenes were despicable. They have made the environmental damage 800% worse and meant that coastguard officers are focused on people control when they should be dealing with the environmental damage."

Conservation groups said seabirds were being contaminated by the 200 tonnes of heavy fuel thought to have leaked from the MSC Napoli, which was towed to the Devon coast after its hull cracked during storm conditions late last week.

Mr Rodaway said officials had initially taken the view that people removing property from the beach for safe storage elsewhere was acceptable so long as they reported their salvage. However, the resulting events prompted him to apply legislation more robustly under the Merchant Shipping Act 1995.

"The scenes I witnessed last night were that there was no intention to store safely or report them. We will be using the law to prosecute people if necessary."

Police spokeswoman Sharon Newman said Devon and Cornwall police had begun towing away cars of people who had travelled to the area in the hope of finding goods. She warned that anyone who sold on recovered items would be committing theft and warrants would be issued to search people's property.

"People who have recovered property have by law to keep it for 28 days and to inform the receiver of wrecks. Those who don't are liable to be arrested and face court procedures. There is not a lot of value left on the beach," she said.

Responding to criticism of the lack of police action, Ms Newman said: "We do not have the powers to close off a village just because we feel like it. We rely on the behaviour of people, which has been despicable. We have to go by the law."

Asked by journalists at the press conference who was in charge of the operation, Mr Middleton hesitated before replying that he had command for events at sea while the police and local authorities, as well as the receiver of wrecks, had responsibility for land. He denied he had responsibility for closing the beach, contradicting an official police spokesman.

Police and the MCA were expected to agree on the closure of the beach by later today. A telephone line will be set up tomorrow for people who want to return possessions they removed from the area. Rewards may be offered to those who provide information about what has happened to "salvaged" possessions.

Meanwhile, a 5,000-tonne ship was brought from Brixham this morning to start pumping out the remaining oil from the 62,000-tonne MSC Napoli, which was taking fuel and nearly 2,400 containers from Belgium to Portugal when it got into trouble. More than 100 containers are believed to have been washed overboard with a few dozen having washed ashore.

Earlier today there were still about 200 people opening bags and boxes, and one container had been set on fire. The main access to Branscombe beach was sealed off by a 100ft-long metal fence as the first stages of the clean-up operation began. Some people had walked miles to get around the police roadblocks.

Zodiac Maritime, which managed the ship, said the main fuel tanks were intact and barges would arrive in the coming days to begin removing the remaining containers.

"Weather conditions at the scene remain favourable for the salvage operation, with winds from the north. The vessel is located in a relatively sheltered position," a Zodiac Maritime spokesman said in a statement.