Ensiklopedia Dunia

Technopedia Center

Faculty of Engineering and Computer Science
S1 Informatics S1 Information Systems S1 Information Technology S1 Computer Engineering S1 Electrical Engineering S1 Civil Engineering

faculty of Economics and Business
S1 Management S1 Accountancy

Faculty of Letters and Educational Sciences
S1 English literature S1 English language education S1 Mathematics education S1 Sports Education

MV Argo Merchant - Wikipedia

Coordinates: 41°01′59″N 69°27′00″W / 41.033°N 69.45°W

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

(Redirected from Argo Merchant)

History
Argo Merchant, aground southeast of Nantucket seen with a silvery oil slick coming from her center holds.
Name	Arcturus (1953-1968) Permina Samudra III (1968-1970) VARI (1970-1973) Argo Merchant (1973-1976)
Owner	Thebes Shipping Inc.
Port of registry	Liberia, Monrovia
Builder	Howaldtswerke Hamburg, Germany
Yard number	886
Launched	5 September 1953
Maiden voyage	1953
In service	1953
Out of service	December 15, 1976
Identification	IMO number: 5022522
Fate	Foundered/sunk at 41°01′59″N 69°27′00″W / 41.033°N 69.45°W / 41.033; -69.45
Notes	^[1]^[2]
General characteristics
Type	Tanker
Tonnage	18,743 GT 28,691 DWT
Length	195.5 m (641 ft)
Beam	25.7 m (84 ft)
Draught	10.6 m (35 ft)
Speed	16 knots
Notes	^[1]^[2]

MV Argo Merchant was a Liberian-flagged oil tanker built by Howaldtswerke in Hamburg, Germany, in 1953, most noted for running aground and subsequently sinking southeast of Nantucket Island, Massachusetts, causing one of the largest marine oil spills in history. Throughout the vessel's troubled past, she was involved in more than a dozen major shipping incidents including two other groundings; once in Indonesia while named Permina Samudra III, and again in Sicily while named Vari; and a collision in Japan.^[1]

Because of her checkered career and sinking, Argo Merchant was featured in the "worst ship" category in the 1979 publication, The Book of Heroic Failures.^[3]

1976 shipwreck

In December 1976, Argo Merchant loaded with 7,700,000 US gallons (29,000,000 L) of No. 6 fuel oil at Puerto La Cruz, Venezuela, sailing for Boston under Captain Georgios Papadopoulos. It was later established that the ship carried two unqualified crew as helmsmen, a broken gyrocompass, inadequate charts, and an inaccurate radio direction finder. At 6 p.m. on 15 December in high winds and 3 m (9.8 ft) seas, the tanker ran aground on Middle Rip Shoal about 29 nautical miles (54 km; 33 mi) southeast of Nantucket and more than 24 nmi (44 km; 28 mi) off her intended course.^[1] The thirty-eight members of the crew were evacuated, but the shallow waters and weather conditions made it impossible to offload the oil or salvage the ship. On 21 December 1976, Argo Merchant broke apart and emptied its entire cargo of fuel oil, enough to heat 18,000 homes for a year. Northwesterly winds blew the 60 by 100 nmi (110 by 190 km; 69 by 115 mi) oil slick offshore, and coastal fisheries and beaches were spared the worst.

Argo Merchant breaking apart on 21 December 1976.

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d "Argo Merchant". Casualty Database. Center for Tankship Excellence. 2010. Retrieved 5 September 2010.
^ ^a ^b Argo Merchant at Shipspotting.com
^ Pile, Stephen (1979). Book of Heroic Failures. London: Futura. ISBN 0-7088-1908-7.

Emergency Response Division, Office of Response and Restoration, National Ocean Service. "Argo Merchant". IncidentNews. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, US Department of Commerce. Archived from the original on 4 August 2010. Retrieved 5 September 2010.
Hook, Norman (1989). Maritime Casualties, 1963-1996. London: LLP Limited. ISBN 1-85978-110-1.
Winslow, Ron (1978). Hard Aground: The Story Of The Argo Merchant Oil Spill. New York: W. W. North. ISBN 0-393-05687-2.

v t e Shipwrecks and maritime incidents in 1976
Shipwrecks	10 Jan: ARA Comandante General Zapiola January (unknown date): Kirk Pride 13 Feb: Oriental Ace 15 Feb: USS Otterstetter 20 Feb: Marie Elizabeth 26 Feb: Gustave Zédé 4 Mar: USS Magnet 23 Mar: INS Godavari 6 Apr: Dwight L. Moody 14 Apr: SAS Vrystaat 13 May: Christmas Seal 23 Jun: NEPCO 140 21 Jul: USS Chopper 20 Sep: HMS Fittleton 15 Oct: USS George K. MacKenzie 20 Oct: George Prince 25 Oct: USS Tigrone 27 Nov: Mona 15 Dec: Argo Merchant 17 Dec: Sansinena 20 Dec: Mecca 23 Dec: Sea Star December (unknown date): Grand Zenith
Other incidents	2 Jan: King Orry 1 Mar: Deep Sea Driller 6 Jun: Armorique 20 Aug: Morning Cloud 28 Aug: USS Voge 31 Aug: TCG Dumlupınar 20 Oct: Frosta 24 Dec: British Steel
1975 1977

Categories:

Hidden categories:

1976 shipwreck

See also

References

Further reading