Divers 'could be sent' on mission to SS Montgomery in Thames Estuary

The SS Richard Montgomery ran aground in 1944 while carrying 1,400 tonnes of munitions and has been wrecked in the Thames Estuary ever since.

With the explosives still live, there are fears the ship’s masts could fall on to the explosive cargo and cause a tidal surge towards the Essex shoreline.

The Department for Transport announced in April that work to dismantle the masts had been delayed after the discovery of 18 “metallic objects” were discovered near the wreck.

Southend Labour councillor Lydia Hyde, who has worked as a scientist and engineer for more than a decade – including involvement in minesweeping operations – believes it is highly likely that divers will be sent down to investigate.

She said: “You cannot get it wrong when handling a bomb ship, it is not one of those things you can mess up and it must be done right.

“In terms of how it is done, it will likely involve human divers and doing a lot of work around this and having previously worked in minesweeping, it is dangerous and the people that do it and those involved are very brave. We must make sure every precaution is taken.”

Ms Hyde added that delays, understood to be a result of the Department for Transport surveying and finding a new contractor to remove the ship’s masts, are necessary.

“It is better we take the time to get this right and we try to reduce the risk around the ship as much as we possibly can. It can go wrong and we must make sure we get the outcome of a safe removal without further disturbing the site,” she said.

“That is what is causing the delay. There is a lot of surveying going on, I think it is the right decision as multiple organisations and stakeholders are involved.

“When the solution comes, we should be proud of the UK’s engineering expertise.”

The boat is currently being monitored and subject to an exclusion zone to prevent any disturbance of munitions on the corroding vessel.