WHEN the pilot and skipper grounded Hoegh Osaka on a sandbank in the Solent, they not only potentially saved the lives of all 25 people on board but prevented a major environmental disaster.

They also prevented a “catastrophe” hitting the city’s port and dealing a crippling blow to Southampton and the whole region’s economy.

Business leaders say the potential impact of a large ship blocking the busy shipping channel leading up to the port could have cost the city millions of pounds every day.

The Associated British Ports (ABP) pilot and skipper of the Hoegh Osaka acted quickly to ground the vehicle container as she began to list.

In a desperate bid to prevent her from capsizing along with her 4,600-tonne cargo they grounded her on Bramble Bank in the Solent late on Saturday.

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Her cargo, which has been estimated to cost between £30m and £100m, includes 1,200 Jaguars and Land Rovers, 65 BMW Minis, 105 JCBs, ten Optare buses and one Rolls-Royce Wraith, valued at £235,000 alone and on its way to the Middle East.

Exporting British made cars is a major activity in Southampton docks.

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She remained grounded and listing at 52 degrees for days and plans to tow her to a deep-sea anchorage were shelved only to be hastily resurrected when she floated off the bank with the assistance of a high tide and heavy winds.

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Since being towed to Alpha Anchorage, about two miles south of Lee-on-the-Solent, the operation to pump between 2 and 3,000 tonnes of seawater from her cargo hold has begun.

It is thought the water got in when she initially made contact with Bramble Bank and a heavy excavator shifted, puncturing a hole in her side.

Bad weather could hamper the plans, which would then see her righted using ballast and towed back into Southampton.

Business leaders have hailed the actions of the pilot in avoiding a disaster that could have dramatically reduced the £1billion Southampton’s port currently contributes to the UK’s economy every year.

They say the ramifications of a giant vessel blocking the channel which containers, cruise liners and transporters use could have been disastrous and resulted in trade going elsewhere in the UK and jobs being lost.

Southampton was named as the best cruise departure port in the country for the sixth year in a row last year, with more than 1.6m passengers passing through its four terminals.

Daily Echo: Best of Southampton.

Those passengers spend almost £60 each on average per visit to the city, meaning the benefit is felt far outside the port’s boundaries.

It also leads the way in cars and containers, making it the second busiest port in the country.

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Stewart Dunn, chief executive of the Hampshire Chamber of Commerce,(above) praised the actions of the pilot, saying he “saved not only lives on the ship but the economic viability of the port and the region”.

He continued: “I think it would have been catastrophic - the simple reason is that the port is the economic driver not only of Southampton but the region.

“You have oil coming into be turned into petrol, containers being taken to DP World carrying things like TVs and mobile phones, and the ferries might not have been able to get through so communications with the Isle of Wight could have been blocked and that would affect the workforce here in Southampton.

“There would also have been a ripple effect on the economy, because Southampton has a huge number of distribution and logistics companies working on the basis of the port which would have been affected.”

Saying the potential economic cost could have run to millions of pounds lost every day, he continued: “In the short-term it would have been dealt with by diverting operations elsewhere.

“But long-term, if it had gone on for weeks which could have lost business from the port to competitors elsewhere and that's probably the real wider issue because once those people go

elsewhere they wouldn't return.”

Allan Graveson, senior national secretary of maritime union Nautilus UK, agreed, saying: “We were very fortunate.

“If the channel was completely blocked I think that would have made it rather difficult.

“I think the damage to the regional economy and Southampton could potentially have been considerable.”

Plans drawn up by owners Hoegh, salvors Svitzer, the Secretary of State's maritime salvage representative Hugh Shaw and the Maritime and Coastguard Agency will see divers and salvors continue their work over the next week.