LONDON (Reuters) — The container vessel MSC Napoli will be beached off the coast of southern England after inspections showed she had a three-metre wide crack in her hull, salvagers said yesterday.The vessel was floated on Monday so divers could evaluate the extent of the damage caused when the crew deliberately ran the vessel aground off Branscombe.

She had become holed in January during storms, an event that triggered a seaside looting spree when cargo containers washed up on shore. Looters from miles around made off with items ranging from BMW motorcycles to dog food to disposable nappies.

Nearly six months later, salvagers said the cracks in the ship were so bad that the vessel could not be towed and would be beached at high tide in shallower waters about half a mile north of where she was originally sitting.

Robin Middleton, the Transport secretary's maritime salvage representative, said "the wreck is in a worse state of deterioration than previously thought, with the crack of the hull being some three-metres wide in places."