A stretch of the River Tyne is being closed down to move a ship involved in South Shields crane collapse.
A stretch of the River Tyne will be closed to all shipping to make way for recovery efforts on a ship which hit a crane.
The Port of Tyne will close the river to shipping for nine hours this week to recover a ship which hit a crane in the port earlier this month.
On Sunday, July 19 the container ship BG Orange collided with a crane in South Shields.
The BG Orange, which was berthed at the port, collided with a Wind Orca container vessel which caused the collapse of the crane.
One person was taken to hospital for treatment following the incident.
A statement from the Port of Tyne said: “A stretch of the River Tyne between Royal Quays and the River Don will be closed tomorrow, Thursday 30th July, to allow for salvage operations to be carried out safely at Tyne Container Terminal.
“This is in relation to the collision between two vessels on Sunday 19th July. Work will be carried out to separate the collapsed gantry crane and the container ship BG Orange. Part of this will involve moving the BG Orange into the river, hence for safety reasons that stretch of the river is being temporarily closed, between 9am and 6pm.”
A Port of Tyne spokesperson said: “This remains a complex and critical operation, and we thank all river users for their patience while the work is carried out.”
The incident resulted in plastic pellets, known as nurdles, spilling into the sea. Nurdles have since been washing up on beaches across the region, including Littlehaven Beach in South Shields as well as coastal areas of Northumberland and Sunderland.
Council-led clean ups remain ongoing.