'It was so unreal': Norwegian man wakes to find cargo ship with 16 crew in his garden

A Norwegian resident was left stunned after waking up to find a 135-metre container ship had run aground in his front yard, narrowly missing his house.

The vessel, NCL Salten, veered off course and came ashore in Byneset, near Trondheim, just before 5am on Thursday as it navigated the Trondheim fjord en route to Orkanger.

Johan Helberg, who has lived in the home for 25 years, was alerted by a neighbour ringing his doorbell. When he looked out his window, he was greeted by the massive bow of the ship looming in his garden.

“I went to the window and was quite astonished to see a big ship,” Helberg told The Guardian. “I had to bend my neck to see the top of it. It was so unreal.”


The ship, travelling at roughly 16 knots (30km/h), ploughed into Helberg’s property, coming dangerously close to his house. A neighbour watched in disbelief as the ship failed to turn and instead sailed directly into shore.

Sixteen crew members were aboard the Cyprus-registered vessel, including nationals from Norway, Lithuania, Ukraine, and Russia. No injuries or environmental damage were reported.

Police are currently investigating the cause of the incident. One individual aboard the ship has been identified as a suspect, though authorities are exploring various explanations, including human error and mechanical failure.

Per Christian Stokke, a spokesperson for the Trondelag police district, confirmed the suspect’s identification and said the investigation is ongoing.

North Sea Container Line (NCL), the company operating the vessel, stated that naming a suspect is standard procedure. CEO Bente Hetland emphasised that there’s no indication the crash was deliberate.

“An incident like this should never happen, and we have launched a full investigation,” Hetland said. “Today we are just grateful that no one was hurt. Our focus remains on the well-being of the crew and those affected nearby.”