By Aidan Wondracz For Daily Mail Australia

Published: 01:02 EDT, 8 August 2022 | Updated: 02:26 EDT, 8 August 2022

A mysterious steel container found floating off the coast of Australia could contain contaminated material inside of it.

The container was discovered by a group of fishermen working on the Wildcard vessel in the Gulf of Carpenteria, north-east of Groote Eylandt.

The crew were unable to tow it back to shore prompting them to attach a marker bouy to it and make it stand out in the ocean so other vessels wouldn't collide with it.

Crew member Prue Davey said they had first tried to open the container by the hatch but later decided against it incase it contained dangerous material inside.

'It looked a bit dangerous to open it,' she told Daily Mail Australia.

A mysterious steel container found floating off the coast of Australia could contain contaminated material inside of it 

Crew member Prue Davey (pictured, with partner Tiger) said they had first tried to open the container by the hatch but later decided against it incase it contained dangerous material inside

'We weren't sure if it had contaminated material in it, like fuel, or waste.'

Her partner Tiger Davey said the object probably came from another vessel as the Gulf of Carpenteria was a major shipping route.

Australian Marine Conservation Society plastics campaign manager Shane Cucow labelled the Gulf a 'hotspot for debris'.

'We have seen much higher than average counts of debris around the Gulf,' he said.

Mr Cucow explained the Gulf was located on the edge of the global ocean currents meaning that waste was pulled in from all over the world to the area.

He said local and international fishing vessels travelling along the shipping route added to the debris with discarded fishing nets and equipment lost in the water.

Maritime Safety NT issued a maritime safety warning following the discovery of the container.

'A coastal notice to mariners has been issued for the waters off North East Groote Eylandt after a large floating container was spotted in the area,' the notice read.

'All vessels in the vicinity to keep a sharp lookout and navigate with extreme caution.'

It is unclear if the container has been retrieved since it was spotted by the Wildcard.

Daily Mail contacted NT Marine Safety for comment. 

Wildcard crew filmed the moment the container was spotted in the water. 

'Holy shiver me timbers,' one person says off-camera.

The crew are heard discussing how to reel in the mystery box saying it would be too dangerous to leave for unsuspecting vessels. 

'That is the stuff of nightmares at night,' another person says off-camera. 

The container was discovered by a group of fishermen working on the Wildcard vessel in the Gulf of Carpenteria, north-east of Groote Eylandt 

Mr Davey said the 'sizeable chunk of steel' measured between five by four metres. 

'We were only passing about 300m off [the container] when we spotted it,' he said.

'If you weren't paying attention or it was night time, it is highly unlikely that it would have been visible on radar or seen by somebody.'

A crew member dived into the water to inspect the object but were unable to open the hatch. 

'We think it's a fuel pod or some sort of storage pod because it has some lifting lugs and a big hatch on the top,' Mr Davey said.

'It has a hose coming off it, so I would say it's off a boat and it's been lost overboard or dropped.'

The comments below have not been moderated.

The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline.

We are no longer accepting comments on this article.

Published by Associated Newspapers Ltd

Part of the Daily Mail, The Mail on Sunday & Metro Media Group