A 25,000 TONNE Maltese-registered cargo vessel was grounded on a sandbank in the Firth of Clyde yesterday.
Three tugs spent almost three hours trying to refloat the Ocean Light, which was carrying animal feed, with no success.
There are believed to be around 23 people on board the Ocean Light, which is 196 metres long.
No one was injured.
A se
cond attempt to refloat the vessel, which is stranded off Dumbarton Castle in the Clyde, was due to be made on the high tide at about 2am.
The coastguard, who was alerted shorted after 1.30pm, said it was not yet sure how much the ship would list as the tide went out.
Once it is afloat again the vessel will be taken to Greenock Ocean Terminal to assess whether it has been damaged. Tarik Yassin, watch manager at the Clyde Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre, said: "We believe there are 23 persons on board the carrier, which was shipping maize, soya and citrus pulp pellets in bulk to Hamburg.
"Currently our priority is to ensure that there is no damage sustained that might put the safety of the vessel and its crew at risk."
Police boats had also been called to the scene. A spokesman for the Scottish Environment Protection Agency [SEPA] said there was no indication of any pollution and that the coastguard would keep them informed of progress.
Bradley Mitchell, who watched the rescue efforts from the shore said: "It looks like they've got a real job on their hands, the tide is going out and it will be hard to the stabilise the vessel. You can see more and more of the vessel on the starboard side as the tide goes out."
The full article contains 294 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
