Bosphorus reopens after stranded cargo ship refloated

ISTANBUL

A container ship that ran aground in the Bosphorus after suffering a steering failure was successfully refloated early April 28, allowing maritime traffic through one of the world’s busiest waterways to resume.

The 148-meter vessel, identified as KAPPA, was navigating from Russia to Kocaeli in northwestern Türkiye when it lost steering control near the Yeniköy coast in Istanbul’s Sarıyer district.

The ship drifted ashore and stopped just meters from the waterfront mansions, known locally as “yalı,” lining the Bosphorus, raising concerns over potential damage.

Emergency response teams from Directorate General of Coastal Safety were immediately dispatched to the area. Authorities sent multiple rescue tugboats, a diving team and a fast-response lifeboat to stabilize the vessel and assess the situation.

In an initial statement, the coastal safety authority said Bosphorus ship traffic had been suspended in both directions as a precaution while salvage operations were underway.

After hours of coordinated work, officials confirmed the vessel had been successfully refloated following underwater inspections by divers. The operation was carried out with three tugboats pulling the ship free from the shoreline.

“Following inspections carried out by our diving and rescue teams, the vessel KAPPA, which ran aground off Yeniköy, was refloated under the coordination of our Istanbul Vessel Traffic Services Center by our tugboats KURTARMA-5, KURTARMA-6 and KURTARMA-8,” the coastal safety authority said.

Following the successful rescue, Bosphorus maritime traffic was reopened to vessels at 7:50 a.m., ending the temporary disruption.

Officials also noted that the same vessel had experienced a separate mechanical failure in 2022 near Kandilli, which had similarly disrupted Bosphorus traffic.