The expedition required diligent and intense preparation. Unfortunately, conditions did not live up to expectations. [2], At the time of the accident, Yiannis Avranas had been an officer for twenty years and a seaman for thirty. Reinforced when Capt. Why did the captain go down with the ship? In 1991, Yiannis Avranas, the captain of a Greek cruise liner, was also strongly criticised after leaving the ship as it started to sink off the South African coast. The Oceanos lies at a depth between 92m and 97m, about 5km offshore, on the western edge of the mighty Agulhas current. The success of the 1988 cruise season in South Africa was the motivation for her return in 1991 on an eight-month charter for TFC Tours of Johannesburg. But if you see something that doesn't look right, click here to contact us! The wind was still blowing, and large swells were visible on the horizon. [2] Usually, there would have been a "sail-away" party on deck. Copyright 19952023 The Independent Traveler, Inc. Amazing, Funny & Totally Awesome Cruise Photos. The Worst Christmas Story Ever: The Sinking of SS Leopoldville on 24 December 1944, How AI is Transforming Personal and Professional Investing, Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning, UC Berkeleys Financial Innovation Conference, Why did Titanic Sink : A Scientific Analysis. Although only three divers made it to the wreck, it was the role of each team member that made it possible. International standards for sea captains vary. ", "Costa Concordia Tragedy: Capt. He made the wrong choice. All Rights Reserved. Allen dismissed that idea, saying the captain's knowledge of his ship is crucial in an emergency. Special Section: Italian Cruise DisasterCruise ship to port: It's just a blackoutPressure mounts on cruise ship divers. The storm worsened as the evening progressed and when the first sitting of dinner was served, the waiters could hardly carry the trays of food without dropping something. A more recent example is Robert Royer, the captain of a fishing vessel that sank off Alaska in 2010. Think of Bligh, or Queeg, or the autocratic captains who drive many of the novels and stories of Herman Melville. The chief engineer reported to Captain Avranas that water was entering the hull and flooding the generator room. Bubbles moved toward the stern and then back again to amidships. From that point on, Smiths activities become more of a blur. The captain went up to the third of these. After that, three preparative dives were conducted, including a complete simulation dive on the Griqualand, which lies at 50m, where gas exchanges and emergency procedures were rehearsed. Smiths final moments arent definitively known, but reports varied widely. I heard (former) Captain Avranas was stripped of his papers and sent to jailbut maybe his sentence was suspended??? This is an amazing story -- if they're doing a new story maybe something new has happened -- like maybe the captain will finally be . But the report noted that some passengers testified that they didnt hear the alarm to proceed to the lifeboats. Most have heard the story, the sinking of the OCEANOS with 571 passengers and crew on board, none of whom suffered . This window period, although based on unscientific information provided by maritime vessels in the area, falls in May and December. Greg Daugherty, alongtime magazine editor and frequent contributor to HISTORY.com, has also written on historical topics for Smithsonian, National Geographic Traveler, and other outlets. Edward Smith went down with the Titanic, the notion that a captain must stay with his ship became part of folklore. Lee Jun-Seok, who was one of the first to flee from the ferry as it sank on Wednesday. Steve said, We had to hold onto the anchor line with all our strength. Unbelievable but true - an account of the terrifying conditions on the OCEANOS on 4 August 1991 when it became obvious that not only was the position of the ship unknown, but the whereabouts of the captain and some crew as well. An iceberg, sir, First Officer William Murdoch replied. It is this forward section of the wreck that incurred the wrath of the ocean floor as the bow slammed into the seabed. -. Several witnesses claimed to have seen him in the water. The cruise ship had sailed with seven beauforts. He hit the bottom, got back up, side of the fault and was swallowed by the sea forever.. He is being held in house arrest as prosecutors prepare criminal charges. At about 15:30 the following day, the Oceanos could hold her head up no longer and sank. The remaining members of the team waited on the boat; some recalled the video footage they had seen of the previous dive made on Monday afternoon and tried to imagine themselves being down there on the wreck with them. Does anyone know of the current whereabouts of former Captain Yiannis Avranas of the doomed Oceanos? Only entertainment staff, singers and waiters helped us later. Italy's highest court has upheld the 16-year jail sentence given to the captain of the Costa Concordia, which capsized in 2012 killing 32 people. "I'm totally embarrassed by what he did," he said of Schettino. The sewage and water systems had their one way "check valves" removed and not replaced. The ship underwent several name changes, including Mykinai, Ancona, Eastern Princess, and finally, in 1976, under the ownership of Pontos Nav SA, she was registered in Piraeus, Greece, under the name of SS Oceanos. As soon as we reached seven degrees, we decided to lower the boats and start evacuation. "I'm kind of flummoxed that a master of a passenger ship anywhere in the world would not understand his obligation extends until that last person is safely off the ship," says Craig Allen, director of the Arctic Law & Policy Institute at the University of Washington. There were 200 sailors on the ship as crew members. During the ensuing trial, prosecutors came up with a tabloid-ready explanation: The married ship captain had sailed it so close to the island to impress a much younger Moldovan dancer with whom he was having an affair. En route to Durban, the Oceanos cruise ship set out from the port of East London on Saturday, August 3, 1991, into 40-knot winds and nine-meter swells. Michigan Senator William Alden Smith, who chaired the Senate investigative committee, charged that Captain Smiths indifference to danger was one of the direct and contributing causes of this unnecessary tragedy., But the senator also gave him credit for his manly bearing and his tender solicitude for the safety of women and little children as well as his willingness to die.. But over 100 people left on board, crew and passengers. [citation needed], Once the engines stopped, the ship began to roll so badly that in the lounge, which is where the passengers had gathered, crockery and cutlery began sliding off the tables and potted plants fell over. Family members of passengers on a South Korean ferry that sank look at lists of survivors on Wednesday. "He's given the industry a bad name, he's made us all look bad. Often, as in the case of Schettino, charges are brought based not on dereliction of maritime duty but for offenses that might pertain on land as well, such as negligence and manslaughter. The sinking of Oceanos. All Rights Reserved. "But that would come after the ship has been evacuated," he added. I am the captain. Having reached the limit of Bretts safe air supply and time underwater, the divers returned to the anchor line to begin their ascent. Moving toward the bow, bad visibility and a substantially more damaged part of the wreck greeted the divers. Smith, who evacuated the ship women and children first until there were no lifeboats left, and then perished with it. Barry and Paul were on closed-circuit rebreathers, a Buddy Inspiration rebreather, and a CIS-Lunar MK5P rebreather, respectively. The function of a rebreather is to re-circulate the unused oxygen in the exhaled breath whilst scrubbing it of all traces of carbon dioxide. After an hour of waiting, he said he saw Smith coming, approached him, and asked him how we was. Here's a link if you want to see a video of the story. MACHINE LEARNING INVESTING IS SPECULATIVE BY NATURE. ", Report: Captain claims he "tripped" into lifeboat. The rescue featured in episode 4 of Shockwave, first aired 21 December 2007. WATCH: Full episodes of When Big Things Go Wrong online now. TRY ASKING HOST DOUGhe usually knows those things. [7][failed verification] The NPR radio show and podcast Snap Judgment featured an account of the sinking by Moss Hills. The good news was that the current had weakened substantially, so the dive was postponed in the hope that conditions would improve later in the day. "[5] Hills reportedly rescued Avranas' dog and released his canary. Powered by Invision Community. In 1994, his English wife Davina published a book about the sinking, titled The Oceanos Tragedy. Both he and Paul had to carry stage cylinders for Brett that would be required at specific depths, so the team had to remain together throughout the dive. It was an event that ended with the sinking of a family cruise shi. [2] Divers have visited her, but strong currents make the dive difficult. The sinking is the subject of a song called "Oceanos" by Celtic rock band Coast. Captain Yiannis Avranas told reporters in Durban that he did not desert the ship but left to coordinate rescue efforts from shore. The reaction of the first engineer sabotaged the captains original plan. [15], Prior to the events of January 1991, Avranas had apparently given no interview to the media. The notorious master of the vessel was Captain Yiannis Avranas. They began launching the remaining lifeboats, with up to 90 people in each, but were unable to start their engines. Must a captain be the last one off a sinking ship? What is glucosamine and fish oil good for? Cowardice comes in many forms, but there's a special sense of shame reserved for captains who abandon ship. Copyright 19952023 The Independent Traveler, Inc. Soon after the collision, he and other officers saw what they believed to be the lights of a nearby ship. "When I order abandon ship, it doesn't matter what time I leave," Avranas said. Oceanos was very poorly maintained while simultaneously operating in one of the most dangerous and rough areas of the oceans. Five divers, including the late Rehan Bouwer, made four attempts to reach the Oceanos, but only succeeded twice, and then only for a matter of minutes. The incident came two years after Francesco Schettino, the captain of the wrecked cruise ship Costa Concordia, was charged with manslaughter and abandoning ship charges he denies. What happened to the captain and crew of the Oceanos? After rescuing passengers and crew followed by interrogations in Durban, South Africa. Towards the end, passengers had to jump into . "It is my responsibility. Use of this site is governed by the User Agreement, Privacy Policy(function(w,d){var loader=function(){var s=d.createElement("script"),tag=d.getElementsByTagName("script")[0];s.src="https://cdn.iubenda.com/iubenda.js";tag.parentNode.insertBefore(s,tag);};if(w.addEventListener){w.addEventListener("load",loader,false);}else if(w.attachEvent){w.attachEvent("onload",loader);}else{w.onload=loader;}})(window,document); and Disclosure Policy. The American inquiry was only slightly harsher in its judgment. The captain must first ensure the safety of his passengers, then of his crew and, finally, of the ship, though the notion that he's supposed to go down with it is more legend than fact. 1940)[1] is a Greek former sea captain who commanded the cruise ship Oceanos when she sank off the Wild Coast of the Transkei, South Africa, on Sunday 4 August 1991. Without a driving force, however, he had to find another solution., The captain broadcast SOS. At about 9:30p.m., a muffled explosion was heard and Oceanos lost power. That is unbelievable!! Yiannis Avranas (born ca. It is believed[by whom?] Smith was at 11:40 p.m. on Sunday, April 14, 1912. In between, however, the first engineer was terrified. It was as if the Wild Coast had been tranquilized by a hunters dart. In more than 40 years at sea he had rarely been involved in an accident and never held accountable for one. [4] The storm worsened, and at approximately 21:30 UTC+2, while off the Wild Coast of the Transkei, a muffled explosion was heard. The captain of the Oceanos was alerted to the problem after receiving reports of water entering some of the cabins on board. The weather conditions became so severe that Avranas determined it best to abandon ship and hope for rescue from nearby vessels or helicopters. In 1965, the captain and several other crew members were among the first to abandon ship after the Yarmouth Castle caught fire and started sinking off the Bahamas, killing 90. Others respect it as "an unwritten rule or law of the sea," said Capt. Outwardly, Smith seems to have kept up a brave front, appearing captain-like to the last, at least to most observers. And he did not lighten his position after the accident when he told a foreign television station: The ships abandonment applies to everyone. Realising the fate of the ship, the crew reportedly fled in panic, neglecting the standard procedure of closing the lower deck portholes. "It's a matter of honor that the master is the last to leave. At any time when you have an incident similar to Concordia, there is nevera single causal factor, says Brad Schoenwald, a senior marine inspector at the United States Coast Guard. Spouse. After evacuating, the 105 meter long ship began to sink. MTS Oceanos was a French-built and Greek-owned cruise ship that sank in 1991 when she suffered uncontrolled flooding. According to Boltman, "later in the morning, Captain Avarnasi [sic] even contacted me from shore to ask how things were going. A Greek board of inquiry found Avranas and four officers negligent in their handling of the disaster. However, rough seas caused the party to be held inside in the Four Seasons lounge;[5] most passengers chose to stay in their cabins. He said he supervised the . The World witnessed an ugly scene back on 03 August 1991 when MTS Oceanos sunk in 1991 because of uncontrolled floods. [4] Boltman told a newspaper: "Later in the morning, Captain Avarnasi (sic) even contacted me from shore to ask how things were going. Rescue helicopters began arriving three hours later, and winched passengers and remaining crew to safety, with Hills continuing in charge of the orderly evacuation. A magician who had been performing on the ship took over the bridge, monitoring rescue calls, as a fellow entertainer kept passengers calm by playing Beatles songs on his guitar. Being one of the worlds most difficult wrecks to reach and successfully dive, the Oceanos offers great rewards for technical divers at the top of their game. In August 1991 I was a junior partner in the maritime . Maritime experts said the tradition of a captain standing by his ship isn't established in international maritime law. In Moby-Dick, Captain Ahab sets off to hunt the whale, leaving the capable Starbuck in charge. What happened to the captain of the Costa Concordia? About 2:00 p.m., the Oceanos begins its vertical descent. And the second boat was only cooks. The dive was aborted for the day. HISTORY reviews and updates its content regularly to ensure it is complete and accurate. Whilst laying the anchor line on the Oceanos that day, the boats remained almost stationary as the opposing forces of wind and current battled against each other for ascendancy. When they bail early, everything falls apart. Thomas Andrews, the Titanics head designer, reported that his inspection revealed flooding in at least five of the Titanics 16 watertight compartments. Meanwhile the extraction was completely broken, the engine room was filling water and tilting forward the ship. There were also 12 inflatable rescue media on the cruise ship. Francesco Schettino, were charged with various crimes. I sure hope he's no longer a ship's captain anywhere! Before the sailing they were given for inspection. Schettino reportedly said he ended up in a life raft after he tripped and fell into the water. In addition, Pryals doctor attested that he was absolutely sane and not given to hallucinations., In fact, Pryal said he had seen Smith twice, once on a Wednesday and again the following Saturday, when he returned to the same spot to look for him. 2012 The Associated Press. I have made a mess and practically the whole ship is flooding, Schettino told Ferrarini while the ship was sinking. Her captain, Yiannis Avranas, and some of the crew were convicted of negligence for fleeing the ship without helping the passengers, who were subsequently rescued thanks to the efforts of the ship's entertainers, who made a mayday transmission, launched lifeboats, and helped South African Marines land on the ship from naval helicopters. All three divers were ecstatic and eager to make the most of the prevailing conditions; the second dive was scheduled for the following day. The divers had penetrated 70m into the wreck with the aid of the scooters. They understood their roles and contributed to the success of this dive. Ship Captain. But when it deviated from its planned path to sail closer to the island of Giglio, the ship struck a reef known as the Scole Rocks. The most famous, perhaps, is the captain of the Titanic, E.J. In the U.S., case law indicates that a ship's master must be the last person to leave and make all reasonable efforts to save everyone and everything on it. The 402 passengers and 179 crew members all survived, but Captain Yiannis Avranas and other officers left the ship while some passengers were still on board. MTS Oceanos was a French-built and Greek-owned cruise ship that sank in 1991 when it suffered uncontrolled flooding.MTS Oceanos. [5] They used the radio phone to broadcast a mayday distress call until Moss received a response.[7]. He also knew that its 20 lifeboats, with a total capacity of 1,178, couldnt begin to accommodate the more than 2,200 passengers and crew members aboard. It's shameful. Fourth Officer Joseph G. Boxhall made a quick inspection of the ship and returned to the bridge to report that he had found no damage. The Oceanos had been on its usual route along the South African coast when it encountered heavy rains and gale-force winds. [22] The show Extreme Weather: The Survivors featured a segment on the sinking. Find History on Facebook (Opens in a new window), Find History on Twitter (Opens in a new window), Find History on YouTube (Opens in a new window), Find History on Instagram (Opens in a new window), Find History on TikTok (Opens in a new window), https://www.history.com/news/titanic-captain-edward-smith-final-hours-death. Pryal was no ordinary crank, but a highly regarded local businessman who claimed to have been an officer aboard the White Star liner Majestic some 30 years before, when Smith was its captain. Do you think anyone was weighing in the boats.. By Will this discovery change our understanding of Titanic's final moments? Epirotiki Lines had lost two other ships within the three years preceding the sinking: the company's flagship Pegasus only two months before, and MV Jupiter, three years before. He was never incarcerated and Epirotiki gave him command of a ferry until his retirement. Still others believed he had made it to an overturned lifeboat but lost his grip, possibly when one of the Titanics immense funnels broke loose and crashed into the water nearby. Maritime officials who did not want to be quoted said it was . But with no sign of conditions improving, the captain eventually decided to lift anchor and the Oceanos, with 581 guests and crew on board, sailed off into 40-knot winds and 9m-high (30ft) waves. [7][failed verification] The South African Navy, along with the South African Air Force, launched a mission to airlift the passengers and crew to the nearby settlements of The Haven and Hole in the Wall, about .mw-parser-output .frac{white-space:nowrap}.mw-parser-output .frac .num,.mw-parser-output .frac .den{font-size:80%;line-height:0;vertical-align:super}.mw-parser-output .frac .den{vertical-align:sub}.mw-parser-output .sr-only{border:0;clip:rect(0,0,0,0);height:1px;margin:-1px;overflow:hidden;padding:0;position:absolute;width:1px}10km (5+12nmi) south of Coffee Bay. I will certainly avoid any Greek ferriesof course truth be known, I avoid all foreign ferries since I don't trust what they think an acceptable number of passengers is. The moment was immortalized by Rudyard Kipling as the "Birkenhead drill." . But in interviews, Captain Avranas was unapologetic for leaving the ship ahead of others, saying he was better able to direct rescue efforts from shore. Tonight on Dateline(NBC) they are doing a special about the sinking of the Greek cruise ship, Oceanos, and the survivors from 8-4-91. On Sunday, the day before the first dive attempt, the gusty southwesterly wind blew. Blowing in the same direction as the current, a strong northeasterly wind would slowly increase the rate of flow beyond that conducive for diving. [9] All 581 people on board were saved. [25], "Oceanos" redirects here. At first it appeared as if Smiths luck was going to hold. The first engineer along with some of the engine room got on a boat and left. Its captain was accused of manslaughter and abandoning the 4,200 passengers and crew on the night of the wreck. While we were busy on one hand throwing the boats they went the other way and left, says Nikolaou. The Oceanos lies at a depth between 92m and 97m, about 5km offshore, on the western edge of the mighty Agulhas current. Maritime experts say such manifestations of courage at sea far outnumber incidents in which captains saved themselves and left their passengers behind. Jean Laborde went through many different owners and name changes (Jean Laborde, Mykinai, Ancona, Eastern Princess) in the succeeding decades. He speaks five foreign languages, originally from Kasos, but was born in Egypt. Evidence introduced in Schettinos trial suggests that the safety of his passengers and crew wasnt his number one priority as he assessed the damage to the Concordia. ", the captain of the wrecked cruise ship Costa Concordia. On 3 August 1991, the Oceanos - initially delayed due to a bomb threat - set out from East London, South Africa and headed for Durban.Captain Yiannis Avranas (born ca. Michael O Mahoney, a passenger remembers at least 30 crew members got on the first boat, while the captain left on a helicopter while passengers were still on deck. Receive the latest AI investment news, offers, and updates from Rebellion Research. In his characteristic style, he managed to weave a comical moment into his narrative of the tumultuous events, telling reporters that he had started singing "Bye Bye Miss American Pie", when he suddenly realised that the next line was going to be "Thisll be the day that I die" - and quickly switched to another song[14][15], Hills later said that searching for Captain Avranas, he had discovered him smoking on the fantail and he said "I think he was in deep, deep shock. Andreas Solaro/AFP/Getty Images Captain of White Star Liner, RMS Titanic, Commander Edward J. Smith, c. 1911. Rear Adm. Richard Gurnon, president of the Massachusetts Maritime Academy called Schettino's actions "abhorrent" and a violation of an unwritten code. [1], Oceanos was launched in July 1952 by Forges et Chantiers de la Gironde in Bordeaux, France as Jean Laborde, the last of four sister ships built for Messageries Maritimes.
University Of Mississippi Medical Center Acceptance Rate,
Grave Rue Mcclanahan Cause Of Death,
Moderna Operating System 5g,
Articles W