A 440-foot-long cargo ship apparently failed to make its turn after entering Trondheim fjord, ending up in the garden of a water-front resident, but incredibly beached without waking the sleeping householder.
The NCL Salten, a Norwegian-operated container ship capable of carrying 886 twenty foot containers (or the equivalent thereof) ran aground in the early hours of Thursday morning after it had entered the Trondheim fjord. The ship had sailed from Averøy on Bremsnesfjorden on Norway’s Atlantic coast the previous day on coastal trade.
The Salten may be relatively small by container ship standards — the largest carry the equivalent of over 24,000 twenty foot containers — but it dwarfed its new neighbour after coming to rest on the shore. After failing to make its turn, and Norwegian police say they are investigating whether this was technical malfunction or human error, the ship ended up directly alongside a small water-front home.
TOPSHOT – An areal view shows a 135-meter-long container ship by the shore in the Trondheimsfjord outside Byneset by Trondheim, Norway, on May 22, 2025, after it ran aground almost hitting a house. (Photo by Jan Langhaug / NTB / AFP) / Norway OUT (Photo by JAN LANGHAUG/NTB/AFP via Getty Images)
British newspaper The Guardian states the householder Johan Helberg told them the ship coming to rest on his property had not awoken him, but rather the knock of a neighbour to check in on him did. He said: “I went to the window and was quite astonished to see a big ship…I had to bend my neck to see the top of it. It was so unreal.”
Ship operator North Sea Container Line (NCL) said in a statement their first attempt to float the ship off on Thursday failed and the next salvage attempt would be on Friday at the earliest. NCL CEO Bente Hetland said: “The situation is stable. We are working closely with the authorities, the ship owner and other partners to assess the next steps”.
There are no reported deaths, injuries, or environmental spills related to the grounding. The crew is reported to consist of Norwegian, Lithuanian, Ukrainian, and Russian seamen. The Daily Mail states: “It is understood the same vessel has run aground three times previously within the last three years.”
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