A GIANT container ship was today set to sail out of Southampton docks - less than 36 hours after a dramatic arrival in the city which left her beached in the Solent.

The 152,000-ton APL Vanda ran aground on Brambles Bank on Saturday evening after a complete loss of power.

The ship which stretches 368m - the length of four football pitches - was meant to dock in Southampton at around 10pm, having travelled from Le Harve, France.

But a mechanical issue triggered a loss of power leading to a controlled manoeuvre to deliberately beach on the sand.

Tug boats went to her aid and within two hours she was refloated herself before being escorted in to port where the cargo was unloaded yesterday.

An investigation was carried out yesterday to determine what caused her to lose power, but owners of the Singapore ship, Neptune Orient Lines (NOL) said there was no major damage sustained to her.

Initially APL Vanda was due to set sail again last night, but timings were put back to 6.30am today.

The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) said it was alerted to the ship’s loss of power at 9.46pm when eight tugs from Port of Southampton Vessel Traffic Services were sent to help.

A spokesman from the MCA said: “We were called to assist with the APL Vanda that had run aground on Brambles Bank due to a loss of power.

"After two hours she managed to re-float herself and made her way into port under her own power, escorted by eight tugs.”

The incident comes 13 months after the 51,000-ton car transporter Hoegh Osaka sparked the largest ever maritime rescue off Southampton shores having beached and listed on Brambles Bank.

The APL brand, which is run by NOL, has ships which regularly dock in Southampton and the APL Vanda is one of 10 vessels which docks in the city.

A spokesman from APL said they worked closely with the investigation team to determine what caused the loss of power.

He said: “There was no injury or pollution arising from the incident.

"The vessel has been thoroughly examined before she proceeds on her next voyage.”