Shipwreck looters drive off on brand-new BMW motorbikes

People are flocking to Britain’s South West Coast to loot – sorry salvage cargo washed ashore from a vessel beached off Devon coast.

Looters Salvors are combing Devon beaches for goods fallen off cargo ship MSC Napoli, which was deliberately run aground in Lyme Bay near Branscombe between Saturday and Sunday.

The ship’s crew was rescued two days earlier after the ship was severly damaged in a storm on Thursday. The deliberate beaching was carried out in an attempt to avoid pollution should the ship sink in deep water.

Major work is currently being carried out to pump the ship for oil in order to avoid devastating pollution of the local area.

The many people gathered on Branscombe beach seem less worried about the potential pollution and more concerned with what goods they can take from the many containers washed ashore. The containers are reported to contain many luxury items such paintings, wine, car parts and beauty products. Some were even seen driving brand-new BMW motorbikes off the beach.

While it is not strictly illegal to remove the goods from the beach according to the Merchant Shipping Act 1995, you should first “make every effort to trace the owner, with a view to obtaining his or her permission” (source: Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA)). Also it is illegal not to report what you have taken to the Receiver of Wreck via a Report of Wreck and Salvage (pdf) form and not to give it back to the rightful owners should they claim it.

If you are one of the people who have helped themselves to the goods from MSC Napoli, you can find advice on what to do on the MCA web site.

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