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Tonight the Westerhaven cargo ship is off the reef but it is still in Belizean waters. As we’ve been reporting – the cargo ship ran aground in an area of the barrier reef near Caye Glory while leaving Belize sometime late on Tuesday night. Marine scientist Melanie McField estimates that the ship damaged as much as 10 thousand square meters of pristine reef- damages she estimated at $20 million.

And that is why the Port Authority has issued a “prohibition of sail” order which means the ship can’t leave until the Port Authority says so. It was however hauled off the reef around 2 pm yesterday. The Department of Environment and the Port Authority are still assessing damages which they say are in the vicinity of US$15 million. The ship was reportedly on autopilot when it ran aground. It was bound for Santo Tomas in Guatemala.

It ran aground in a popular fishing area for commercial fishermen known as “Emily.”