r and began to list in rough seas whipped up by a tropical cyclone off northern Australia. The MV Wunma, owned by Australia's Zinifex Ltd., remained afloat in the Gulf of Carpentaria, about 80 km (65 nautical miles) north of its base in Queensland state, with 5,000 tonnes of zinc concentrate, or ground ore.
"The ship itself is currently still listing, but floating," Australian Maritime Safety Authority spokeswoman Tracey Jiggins told Reuters, adding that all shipping in the area had been alerted to the presence of the abandoned vessel.
The crew were winched aboard two helicopters sent to the area following a distress call put out by the Wunma early on Wednesday after it took on water and lost power in the rough seas.
The Bureau of Meteorology said tropical cyclone Nelson had caused waves of up to five meters (16 feet) in the Gulf of Carpentaria.
Zinifex said output at its Century zinc mine was unaffected by the incident and a salvage team hoped to be able to stabilize the ship.
"The vessel remains in sound condition and is anchored and stable. The seas have abated and the swell is now down to one or two meters," Zinifex said in a statement.
Most of the material from Century is destined for Zinifex's Budel smelter in the Netherlands.
The company said it was trying to identify a replacement barge if the Wunma was unavailable.
Category two Cyclone Nelson crossed land on Queensland's Cape York Peninsula early on Wednesday, packing gale force winds, dumping heavy rain on the remote area and causing flooding in northern Queensland.
The cyclone was later downgraded to category one as it moved inland and to the south east.
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