Timber clean-up to 'take a month'

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Coastguards think it could take a month to clear the hundreds of tonnes of timber which washed up on the Kent coast after it fell from a cargo ship.

The wood washed ashore around Ramsgate and Margate when the Russian-registered Sinegorsk shed its load, off Sussex.

Police have warned people to stay off the beaches but hundreds have braved the weather to remove the timber.The Maritime and Coastguard Agency has hired contractors to clear the wood on behalf of the ship's owners.

A Dover Coastguard spokesman said: "Lots of the wood is in inaccessible places and it's so widespread it certainly isn't going to go away tomorrow. We think it's going to take a month, at the least, to clear it all up."

Beach warning

He said the bulk of the wood was still drifting about 11 miles off the coast of Margate and was expected to continue eastwards and possibly wash up on the Belgian coast.

Kent Police and the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, who are coordinating the clear-up, have been patrolling the area and contractors appointed by the ship's insurers have been recovering the lost cargo.

Signs are in place across the affected beaches warning people to stay away.

The Receiver of Wreck has warned that anyone who takes away timber must report it within 28 days.

Failure to do so is a criminal offence, with a fine of up to £2,500.

The Sinegorsk shed its 1,500-tonne load during rough seas in a major shipping lane, 14 miles off Newhaven on Monday.

The vessel sailed on to Southampton to allow damage to be assessed and the remaining cargo to be secured.