Cranes used at site of toppled ship in Leith dock

Two large Mammoet cranes have been placed at the port side of the Petrel, which tipped over last month.

Specialist cranes are on site of an Edinburgh dry dock as investigations continue into why a US Navy vessel toppled over, injuring 35 people.

Two large Mammoet cranes have been placed at the port side of the 3,371-tonne Petrel, which tipped over on 22 March.

It sparked a huge emergency operation at Imperial Dock in Leith.

Both the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and Police Scotland said their investigations were continuing.

Officers remain at the scene, and on Thursday a police car could be seen as workers operated the cranes and moved around the stricken vessel.

A spokesman for the HSE said: "Specialist inspectors from HSE are assessing the technical aspects of the structural collapse and continue to work with Police Scotland on the investigation into this incident."

Images on social media showed the vessel at a 45-degree angle

The 76m-long Petrel was once owned by the late Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, who bought the ship to locate historically significant shipwrecks.

But in 2022 the Isle of Man-registered vessel was sold to the US Navy, and is now operated by American-owned firm Oceaneering International.

The Petrel has been moored at Imperial Dry Dock in Leith since 3 September 2020 due to "operational challenges" from the pandemic.

After it tipped over, a huge emergency service operation was launched, which included trauma teams, an air ambulance and the Coastguard, who all worked for hours to rescue people from the ship.

Some 35 people were injured, with 23 taken to hospital and 12 others treated at the scene.

A Police Scotland spokesman said: "Officers are working with the Health and Safety Executive.

"Inquiries are ongoing to establish the full circumstances."

The US Navy, Dales Marine Services, which operates the dry dock, and Oceaneering International have been approached for comment.

In a statement on Dales Marine Services' website, it said it "continues to liaise with the emergency services and relevant authorities in dealing with the incident" and at this time it "cannot comment any further".