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Photos: Greece hauls half-sunken ships trashed out near Piraeus

Dozens of abandoned cargo and passenger ships lie semi-submerged or completely sunken around the Gulf of Elefsina, near Greece’s major port of Piraeus. Now authorities are beginning to remove the dilapidated ships. Some of them have been there for decades, leaking hazards like oil into the environment and creating a danger to modern shipping. One expert calls the abandoned ships “an environmental bomb.”

Updated on: Jan 05, 2019 10:11 AM IST

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A boat, that was recovered after spending years as a shipwreck is photographed at a dock in Elefsina, west of Athens, Greece. The hulking remains of another cargo ship rose up through the water, listing to one side with a rusting hull exposed, its glory days of sailing the world’s seas and oceans long gone. (Thanassis Stavrakis / AP)

Updated on Jan 05, 2019 10:11 AM

A boat, that was recovered after spending years as a shipwreck is photographed at a dock in Elefsina, west of Athens, Greece. The hulking remains of another cargo ship rose up through the water, listing to one side with a rusting hull exposed, its glory days of sailing the world’s seas and oceans long gone. (Thanassis Stavrakis / AP)

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These are just a few of dozens of abandoned cargo and passenger ships that lie semi-submerged or completely sunken in and near the Gulf of Elefsina, an industrial area of shipyards and factories near Greece’s major port of Piraeus. (Thanassis Stavrakis / AP)

Updated on Jan 05, 2019 10:11 AM

These are just a few of dozens of abandoned cargo and passenger ships that lie semi-submerged or completely sunken in and near the Gulf of Elefsina, an industrial area of shipyards and factories near Greece’s major port of Piraeus. (Thanassis Stavrakis / AP)

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Now Greek authorities have begun to remove the ships, some of which have been there for decades, saying they are both an environmental hazard and a danger to modern shipping. “We are speaking about 27 shipwrecks and potentially ... 12 harmful and dangerous ships,” said Charalampos Gargaretas, the chief executive officer of Elefsina Port Authority. “(It’s) a tragic situation.” (Thanassis Stavrakis / AP)

Updated on Jan 05, 2019 10:11 AM

Now Greek authorities have begun to remove the ships, some of which have been there for decades, saying they are both an environmental hazard and a danger to modern shipping. “We are speaking about 27 shipwrecks and potentially ... 12 harmful and dangerous ships,” said Charalampos Gargaretas, the chief executive officer of Elefsina Port Authority. “(It’s) a tragic situation.” (Thanassis Stavrakis / AP)

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From Piraeus to the island of Salamina that lies off of Elefsina, the sea is littered with 52 shipwrecks, said Dimosthenis Bakopoulos, head of Greece’s Public Ports Authority. “You don’t have to be a scientist to understand that the shipwrecks are an environmental bomb that degrades the environment of the nearby municipalities,” he said, adding that some of ships were still leaking petroleum products. (Thanassis Stavrakis / AP)

Updated on Jan 05, 2019 10:11 AM

From Piraeus to the island of Salamina that lies off of Elefsina, the sea is littered with 52 shipwrecks, said Dimosthenis Bakopoulos, head of Greece’s Public Ports Authority. “You don’t have to be a scientist to understand that the shipwrecks are an environmental bomb that degrades the environment of the nearby municipalities,” he said, adding that some of ships were still leaking petroleum products. (Thanassis Stavrakis / AP)

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But the process has been wrought with difficulties. The owners of the ships vary from individuals to inheritors to companies registered in countries ranging from Greece to the Marshall Islands, Britain and Honduras. Some have gone bankrupt, some are no longer traceable, officials say. (Thanassis Stavrakis / AP)

Updated on Jan 05, 2019 10:11 AM

But the process has been wrought with difficulties. The owners of the ships vary from individuals to inheritors to companies registered in countries ranging from Greece to the Marshall Islands, Britain and Honduras. Some have gone bankrupt, some are no longer traceable, officials say. (Thanassis Stavrakis / AP)

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To counter this authorities have put in motion a process where abandoned ships can be appropriated by the state. Salvage companies then take over the job of breaking up the ships and removing the remains — a job they undertake free of charge to the state in return for being able to sell the metal for scrap. (Thanassis Stavrakis / AP)

Updated on Jan 05, 2019 10:11 AM

To counter this authorities have put in motion a process where abandoned ships can be appropriated by the state. Salvage companies then take over the job of breaking up the ships and removing the remains — a job they undertake free of charge to the state in return for being able to sell the metal for scrap. (Thanassis Stavrakis / AP)

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Another problem Greek authorities have faced is the lack of licensed ship-breaking yards in the area, and some opposition from locals who fear the environmental impact of large ships being demolished in their area. (Thanassis Stavrakis / AP)

Updated on Jan 05, 2019 10:11 AM

Another problem Greek authorities have faced is the lack of licensed ship-breaking yards in the area, and some opposition from locals who fear the environmental impact of large ships being demolished in their area. (Thanassis Stavrakis / AP)

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A man fishes as half sunken and abandoned ships are moored in the Gulf of Elefsina. “It is the sins of many years which we now have come (to solve),” said Gargaretas. “We are trying in a very short period of time and with huge bureaucratic and legal hurdles to remove all these ships from the area.” (Thanassis Stavrakis / AP)

Updated on Jan 05, 2019 10:11 AM

A man fishes as half sunken and abandoned ships are moored in the Gulf of Elefsina. “It is the sins of many years which we now have come (to solve),” said Gargaretas. “We are trying in a very short period of time and with huge bureaucratic and legal hurdles to remove all these ships from the area.” (Thanassis Stavrakis / AP)

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