Dramatic salvage efforts being made to remove the FV Zambucca off the reef on the south-eastern side of Rarotonga Photo: Kirby Moreland
The Cook Islands government is worried the grounding of a domestic longline fishing boat on a reef in Rarotonga could pose an environmental threat to the area.
The Ministry of Marine Resources said the biggest concern was physical damage to the reef or fuel leaks.
Most of the fuel onboard the FV Zambucca has been safely removed and there have been no leaks since the vessel grounded over the weekend.
The Ministry said as efforts continued to remove the vessel, the primary concern was the protection and health of the reef and the environment.
The government said it would continue to monitor the salvage effort, including the use of heavy machinery in the lagoon to push the vessel off the reef.
The Ministry will re-survey the area after the salvage work is complete.
The FV Zambucca is a Cook Islands flagged, 20 metre long fishing vessel which has been operating out of Rarotonga since 2016.
