By MERAIAH FOLEY
SYDNEY, Australia (AP) -- Salvage crews inspected a beached coal freighter for possible fuel leaks Saturday as emergency crews began cleaning up after a wild storm lashed Australia's east coast, killing at least five people.
An aircraft flew over the stricken Panama-registered ship Pasha Bulker but found no signs of oil or fuel leaking from the 738-foot vessel, said New South Wales state maritime chief Neil Patchett.
He said "contingency arrangements" were in place for any leakage from the ship, which is carrying 700 tons of fuel oil, 38 tons of diesel and 40 tons of lubricating oil.
A salvage crew examined the ship's hull Saturday; their findings will be used to determine how the ship might be removed from the sand bank without spilling any oil, Patchett said.
Pumps, air compressors, air hoses and other equipment were airlifted onto the Pasha Bulker Saturday to help the assessment process, as strong seas continued to batter the ship.
The massive coal ship was pushed onto a sand bank early Friday off the port city of Newcastle, some 90 miles north of Sydney.
Rescue helicopters airlifted the 21 crew of the 40,000-ton ship to safety at a nearby park, where paramedics who examined the men found them in good health. All are Filipinos.
The ship was not carrying any cargo and no one was injured in the incident, but officials said there was some risk of the vessel breaking apart and leaking hundreds of tons of fuel oil and diesel into the sea.
Newcastle Port Corp. executive Gary Webb said officials would continue to monitor the ship overnight for any signs of hull damage or leakage.
"We will be monitoring the vessel and hopefully once we get through the night the weather will abate," he said.
Meanwhile, crews began cleaning up the damage after heavy rains brought flash flooding, landslides and blackouts across eastern New South Wales state overnight, prompting thousands of distress calls to emergency services.
Police recovered the bodies of an elderly couple whose car was swept off a bridge in the Hunter Valley near the city of Newcastle.
The bodies of a man and two children were also discovered in an area where police were searching for a family of five who went missing when their car fell into a swollen creek after a section of highway collapsed.
Authorities were also searching Saturday for a man who was last seen being swept into a storm drain in Newcastle.
Energy Australia, the state's main power supplier, said around 200,000 homes were without electricity between northern Sydney and Newcastle.