The MV Gleaner, a 12-metre steel vessel that sank at Shortland Wharf in Thames during Cyclone Vaianu on Sunday 12 April, has been successfully salvaged, bringing to a close a two-week operation that at one point raised concerns about fuel contamination in an ecologically sensitive coastal area.
A diesel sheen was detected by a Waikato Regional Council staff member on April 16, prompting an immediate response. Oil spill booms were deployed alongside the wharf to absorb the fuel, and Regional On Scene Commander Celeste Davies-Calway said the council moved quickly given what was at stake. “This is an area of significant conservation value,” she said. “We are keen to get out there and identify and protect any areas at risk.”
Subsequent investigation tempered the initial concerns. By April 17, council staff had assessed the sheen as very thin and silvery in appearance, leading them to suspect it was a small amount of hydraulic fluid rather than diesel, likely weeping from under the hull where the vessel was sitting on mud. There was no indication that the MV Gleaner had been carrying significant quantities of fuel.
Absorbent booms remained in place over the following days while the council liaised with the wharf owner, local iwi, the Department of Conservation, and Thames Coromandel District Council to keep stakeholders informed.
The salvage operation began on Wednesday 23 April, with council Maritime Services staff and salvage specialists Trojan Marine Services on site from 8am. Mud and water were pumped from the vessel in preparation for refloating, and the MV Gleaner was hauled from the water the following day. Throughout the operation, no discharge of diesel or other hydrocarbons was recorded, and no significant fuel stores were found on board.
The council thanked the Thames community, affected iwi and local businesses for their patience and support during the response.
As for the vessel itself, its history remains as murky as the water it sat in. Coromandel CFM noted that the Gleaner has attracted its share of wharf-side speculation. “What makes the Gleaner unusual is what isn’t known about her. No owner has come forward, and the absence has done what absences always do in a small town, it has filled with stories. Versions circulating around the wharf include the boat being won in a card game, changing hands informally more than once, and various accounts of how she came to be tied up at Shortland in the first place. None of it is verified, and the council has not publicly named an owner.”
