 The sinkingAmoco Cadiz | |
| History | |
|---|---|
| Name | Amoco Cadiz |
| Owner | Amoco Transport Co. |
| Port of registry |  Liberia |
| Builder | |
| Yard number | 95 |
| Laid down | 24 November 1973 |
| Launched | 1974 |
| Completed | May 1975 |
| Out of service | 16 March 1978 (aged 3–4) |
| Identification | IMO number: 7336422 |
| Fate | Sunk at48°36′N4°42′W / 48.6°N 4.7°W /48.6; -4.7 |
| Notes | [1] |
| General characteristics | |
| Tonnage | 233,690 DWT; 109,700 GRT |
| Length | 334.02 m (1,095.9 ft) |
| Beam | 51.06 m (167.5 ft) |
| Draught | 19.80 m (65.0 ft) |
| Installed power |
|
| Propulsion | Single screw |
| Speed | 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph) |
| Capacity | 1.6 Mbbl (250×10 |
| Crew | 44 |
| Notes | [1][2] |
Amoco Cadiz was anoil tanker owned byAmoco Transport Corp and transportingcrude oil forShell Oil. Operating under theLiberian flag, she ran aground on 16 March 1978 onPortsall Rocks, 2 km (1.2 mi) from the coast ofBrittany, France. Ultimately she split in three and sank, resulting in thelargest oil spill of its kind to that date.[1][2]
On 16 March 1978 in a southwesterlygale, theAmoco Cadiz passedUshant at the western tip of Brittany, headed forLyme Bay in the United Kingdom. At 9:46 am when thesupertanker was north of Ushant and 16 nautical miles (30 km; 18 mi) west of Portsall she turned to avoid another ship and her rudder jammed, full over to port. Captain Bardari shut down the engine and attempted to make repairs, but they were not successful. Meanwhile, the wind began blowing from the northwest, driving the ship toward the coast. By the time thetugboatPacific successfully attached ahawser, it was 2:00 pm and theAmoco Cadiz had drifted 6 nautical miles (11 km; 6.9 mi) closer to the shore. For two hours, the tugboat struggled to slow the vessel's drift, but then the towline parted. Captain Bardari turned his engines on full astern and this helped slow the ship's drift. At 7:00 pm, the captain shut down the engines so that thePacific could try to attach another hawser. The supertanker dropped one anchor, but the flukes broke off. At this point the supertanker was drifting at 2 knots (3.7 km/h; 2.3 mph) toward the Portsall Rocks. A new towline was successfully attached at 8:55 pm.
Amoco Cadiz ran aground for the first time at 9:04 pm.[3] She rode a high wave over a spire of rock which she then was impaled on.[4] The rock cut through the plating of her bottom and thrust into the network of piping and machinery of the pump room as well as rupturing the rear wall of number-four cargo tank.[4] The engine room flooded.[5] She rolled and ground on the rock for about five minutes until another large wave lifted her off and she continued her southwesterly drift, pulling thePacific after her.[4]
The ship then drifted through the Portsall Rocks and at 9:30 pm she ran aground for the second time,[4] on the Men Goulven rock 2 km (1.243 mi) from the shore.[4] She hit the reef stern first and the bottom under the engine room was opened.[4] She pivoted round to the port and stopped with her bow pointing toward land.[4] She came to rest with her stern impaled on a rock about 12 metres under the surface and her bow on another six to seven metres deep.[4] Between these rocks the depth was 25 to 30 metres.[4] ThePacific had increased her towing speed, but shortly after 10:00 pm the second tow broke.[4]
After the second grounding, the waves brokeAmoco Cadiz into two parts held together by distorted metal on the port side.[6] On 24 March the two parts were completely torn apart and the rear section swung 90 degrees around from pointing southwest to southeast.[6] On 25 March she was close to breaking apart again, and by 28 March the wreckage was further moved around by the tides and waves.[6]
By 29 March she had broken into three separate pieces and it was decided to destroy her withdepth charges dropped from threeSuper Frelon helicopters.[6] The Navy dropped twelve Mark 56 anti-submarine grenades, each containing 350 lb (158.757 kg) of high explosives set to go off 8 m (26 ft 2.96 in) under water, and she sank 15 minutes later.[6] Detonation of the charges was visible as huge water fountains and shook the ground ashore more than a mile away.[6][7][8][9]
Amoco Cadiz contained 1,604,500barrels (219,797 tons) oflight crude oil fromRas Tanura,Saudi Arabia andKharg Island,Iran.[9] Severe weather resulted in the complete breakup of the ship before any oil could be pumped out of the wreck, resulting in her entire cargo of crude oil (belonging toShell) and 4,000 tons offuel oil being spilled into the sea.[10] The USNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) estimates that the total oil spill amounted to 220,880 tonnes of oil.[11]
In 1988 a U.S. federal judge ordered Amoco Oil Corporation to pay $85.2 million in fines; $45 million for the costs of the spill and $39 million in interest.[9] In 1992, Amoco agreed to pay $230 million (equivalent to $515m in 2024).[12]
The wreck is now frequently visited by leisure divers.[13]
Media related toAmoco Cadiz at Wikimedia CommonsShipwrecks and maritime incidents in 1978 | |
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