At roughly midnight, Andrews reportedly told Smith the Titanic could last another 60 to 90 minutes. INVESTMENTS INVOLVE RISK AND UNLESS OTHERWISE STATED, ARE NOT GUARANTEED. In 1994, his English wife Davina published a book about the sinking, titled The Oceanos Tragedy. The wind was still blowing, and large swells were visible on the horizon. The current on the surface was running reverse, and there was no sign of the dreaded Northeaster. In an interview with the captain, he jokingly remarked that if the ship should sink, he would be on the first lifeboat off the ship. Those who did earned instant infamy, like the captain of the Greek luxury liner Oceanos, which sank in rough seas off South Africa in 1991. The sewage and water systems had their one way "check valves" removed and not replaced. The divers descended the anchor line and were able to return to it some twenty minutes later, after making their way around most of this 152 m wreck. He immediately ordered an evacuation of all passengers and crew. He speaks five foreign languages, originally from Kasos, but was born in Egypt. Technicians pass in a small boat near the stricken cruise liner Costa Concordia lying aground in front of the Isola del Giglio on January 26, 2012 after hitting underwater rocks on January 13. Former captain of the Costa Concordia Francesco Schettino speaks with reporters after being aboard the ship with the team of experts inspecting the wreck on February 27, 2014 in Isola del Giglio, Italy. He in consultation with the international federation fled Nikolaou to Greece. Although only three divers made it to the wreck, it was the role of each team member that made it possible. Sunk by uncontrolled flooding on 4 August 1991 off the coast of South Africa. . What happened to the captain of the Oceanos ship? 2023, A&E Television Networks, LLC. UK Retailer Simply Scuba Goes Into Administration For Good This Time, Dive Curaao Launches New All-In-One Vacation Platform. Blowing in the same direction as the current, a strong northeasterly wind would slowly increase the rate of flow beyond that conducive for diving. [22] The show Extreme Weather: The Survivors featured a segment on the sinking. The Costa Concordia was owned by Costa Crociere, a subsidiary of Carnival . In 1991, Capt. All considered, said Canadian-American fellow team member and cave diving world record holder Paul Heinerth, the Oceanos is probably one of the most, if not the most difficult wreck in the world to dive. The difficulties of diving on the Oceanos are extreme, but with commitment and proper planning, the dive is not impossible. The Oceanos thrust her stern into the air and slid nose first into the sea. No one knows exactly where Captain E.J. Before the sailing they were given for inspection. [20][21], Dateline NBC aired a documentary of the incident on 23 May 2010. One of the divers, Karl van der Merwe, commented, The current was so strong that it would rip your mask off your face and your regulator out of your mouth. The MV Oceanos was a 153 meter passenger ship, built in 1952 and designed to carry 550 passengers and 250 crew. WATCH: Full episodes of When Big Things Go Wrong online now. This page is not available in other languages. [15], Prior to the events of January 1991, Avranas had apparently given no interview to the media. The nearest, RMS Carpathia, replied that it would change course and hurry to the Titanics position. I sure hope he's no longer a ship's captain anywhere! The water steadily rose and flowed through the 10 cm hole in the bulkhead and into the waste disposal tank. The Greek government is not doing anything about the incident. Brett and Paul penetrated the portside corridor behind the on-deck pool while Barry singularly explored the large dining hall area. Some early newspaper reports, allegedly supported by eyewitnesses, say he had shot himself with a pistol, though few historians give them any credence. Nobody cared until that time if those who left on the boats were alive. For example, three months after the Titanic disaster, in July 1912, a Baltimore man named Peter Pryal reported seeing Smith on the streets of that city. The Greek government is not doing anything about the incident. MACHINE LEARNING INVESTING IS SPECULATIVE BY NATURE. : "Go back on board!". [8] They were assisted by the lifeboats of the Dutch cargo ship Nedlloyd Mauritius, which had responded to the distress call. It is generally a sequence of events, things that line up in a bad way that ultimately create that incident., READ MORE: 5 Maritime Disasters You Might Not Know About. Nothing less will do in this profession," said Jorgen Loren, captain of a passenger ferry operating between Sweden and Denmark and chairman of the Swedish Maritime Officer's Association. He had apparently confused the Titanics partially enclosed promenade deck with the totally open one of her sister ship, Olympic, which he had previously commanded. "It's a matter of honor that the master is the last to leave. 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. 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. Bill Wright, senior vice president of Marine Operations for the Royal Caribbean International cruise line. Smith's body was never recovered, and his final moments remain a mysterywith no shortage of conflicting accounts. Chopper pilot, Ian Osborne, lifted his Alouette helicopter into the air en route to the wreck site. As author Wyn Craig Wade wrote in The Titanic: End of a Dream, Captain Smith had at least five different deaths, from heroic to ignominious. Rumors of his survival also circulated. "[5] Hills reportedly rescued Avranas' dog and released his canary. 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 sense that captains are beyond the law that they are the law, or at least they were, during the age of sail is why they make such great bad guys. In a matter of minutes, the occupants returned with a very favorable report on conditions. Captains accused of leaving prematurely often claim they can manage the situation better from the safety of a lifeboat, rescue vessel or on shore. After more than three hours in the water, they were rescued by a Coast Guard helicopter. IIRC his response to being in a life boat was, "he was oraganizing the rescue effort! Bubbles moved toward the stern and then back again to amidships. [5][6] Thirteen of the sixteen were South African Air Force Pumas, nine of which hoisted 225 passengers off the deck. This is an amazing story -- if they're doing a new story maybe something new has happened -- like maybe the captain will finally be . We were preparing to eat when the first mechanic warned us. I wouldnt recommend this wreck to anyone but the best technical divers who really know what theyre doing.. [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. However, an Italian naval admiral testified in court that even though the helmsman was late in executing the captains orders, the crash wouldve happened anyway. (The helmsman was one of the four crew members convicted in court for contributing to the disaster. Copyright 2023 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. Follow her on Twitter at @MsBeckyLittle. Maritime officials who did not want to be quoted said it was . Known for. Passengers remained ignorant of the events taking place until they witnessed the first signs of flooding in the lower decks. It has been reported that the ship was in a state of neglected maintenance with loose hull plates and an unfitted ventilation pipe. That was one of several incidents that have led some historians to question whether Smith had gone into a state of shock. They accused the crew and the captain, but if there werent good moves with so much inconvenience and so much wave who would be saved? REBELLION RESEARCH ADVISORS, L.P. IS A REGISTERED INVESTMENT ADVISER AND NOT FOR PROFIT EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH THINK TANK. Several of the ship's crew, notably Capt. Smiths final moments arent definitively known, but reports varied widely. One week later, a 32-member team arrived on the scene as part of MNet Camera 7 news channels investigative documentary into the sinking of the Oceanos. 19952023, The Independent Traveler, Inc. Captain Yiannis Avranas who left passengers to die? He had set sail for a sandy area at four miles, which he had found on the map. The international and some Greek media condemned the attitude of Captain Yiannis Avranas. And the second boat was only cooks. The ship reportedly headed into 40-knot winds and 30-foot swells, and thus the typical sail-away outdoor deck party with British entertainers Moss and Tracy Hills was moved to an indoor lounge. Several witnesses claimed to have seen him in the water. The Oceanos arrived in South Africa in 1991. "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. Francesco Schettino had handed himself in to the Rebibbia prison in Rome after the verdict, his lawyer said. 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. It is believed[by whom?] Soon after the collision, he and other officers saw what they believed to be the lights of a nearby ship. While we were busy on one hand throwing the boats they went the other way and left, says Nikolaou. Back in the early 1990's came an incredible event, most now, don't remember or know about. It was owned by Epirotiki Lines of Greece and chartered at the time by a South African company, TFC Tours. "It isn't just a maritime code, it's a code of leadership," Gurnon said. This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies. hide caption. Many famous naval disasters happen far out at sea, but on January 13, 2012, the Costa Concordia wrecked just off the coast of an Italian island in relatively shallow water. After the required decompression runtimes, the divers surfaced, and the team returned to shore. [2] Usually, there would have been a "sail-away" party on deck. Although Smith had ordered the boats uncovered some 40 minutes earlier, he didnt give the order to begin loading and lowering them until Second Officer Charles Lightoller reminded him by asking, Hadnt we better get the women and children into the boats, sir?. After five days of staying at the hotel, the other Greek sailors with the assistance of the Greek consular authorities also escaped. The technology means that the rebreather diver uses significantly less gas, has reduced nitrogen uptake, and subsequently fewer decompression requirements. This day turned out much better than expected. A recording of his conversation with the Italian Coast Guard suggests he fled before all passengers were off, and resisted repeated orders to go back, saying the ship was tipping and it was dark. TRY ASKING HOST DOUGhe usually knows those things. "[16][19] In 1992, he and five other officers were convicted of negligence by a Greek board of inquiry for fleeing the ship without helping the passengers. The reaction of the first engineer sabotaged the captains original plan. 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. Think of Bligh, or Queeg, or the autocratic captains who drive many of the novels and stories of Herman Melville. "The captain called the men to attention," says William Fowler, a maritime historian at Northeastern University. The unethical, unprofessional prick are working as a Captain of a ferry in Greece. Within eight minutes I closed the waterproof doors. [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. Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. [9] All 581 people on board were saved. The first engineer along with some of the engine room got on a boat and left. Although conditions looked very good for diving, a large shore break was preventing our launch, and the skippers felt the risk to the team, and their vessels were too great. The ship was built in France and owned by a Greek cruise ship company. Will this discovery change our understanding of Titanic's final moments? ":rolleyes: I don't know what ever happened to him. The international and some Greek media condemned the attitude of Captain Yiannis Avranas. "If you are leader, you have responsibility for your people, they put their lives in your hands.". Although Barry, Paul, and Brett would dive to the Oceanos as a team, they were all on different equipment. 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. I would know him even without his beard.. dontpanik, July 2, 2007 in What Ever Happened To..??? "[10], Captain Avranas received extensive media coverage as an example of unprofessional behaviour whilst in command. MTS Oceanos was a French-built and Greek-owned cruise ship that sank in 1991 when it suffered uncontrolled flooding.MTS Oceanos. Heres some good live video when it happened!!! Usually, there would have been a "sail-away" party on deck with the ship's musicians and British . It was also discussed in an episode of Nova on 18 April 2012, entitled, "Why Ships Sink", which focused mainly on the Costa Concordia accident (whose commanding officer also fled while passengers were still aboard). Spouse. Oceanos headed into 40-knot winds and 9 m (30 ft) swells. / AP. Realizing the ships fate, the crew fled in panic, neglecting to close the lower deck portholes, which is standard policy during emergency procedures. MTS Oceanos was a French-built and Greek-owned cruise ship that sank in 1991. The avoidable disaster killed 32 people and seriously injured many others, and left investigators wondering: Why was the luxury cruise ship sailing so close to the shore in the first place? The image of a captain staying with a sinking vessel has recurred again and again, in literature and real life. Making things worse, the crew had dropped the anchor incorrectly, causing the ship to flop over even more dramatically. We strive for accuracy and fairness. The Concordia was supposed to take passengers on a seven-day Italian cruise from Civitavecchia to Savona. "I can't lift my face before the passengers and family members of those missing," Lee told reporters. Surviving wireless operator Harold Bride, a more reliable witness, said hed seen Smith dive from the bridge into the sea. Others said he was swept off by a wave orhaving been swept offswam back to the Titanic to meet his end. The onsite expedition requirements included everything from personal diving gear, three imported Silent Submersion scooters, twenty staged decompression cylinders, a specialized mixed gas compressor unit, several large oxygen, and helium cylinders, three 7.3m rigid hull inflatable boats, an evacuation helicopter, and trained medical personnel. Such callous words were spoken by Yiannis Avranas, captain of the Greek luxury liner Oceanos, which sank off the coast of South Africa in 1991. I would avoid any cruise that involves a Greek ship! All 571 passengers and crew survived. Should oxygen levels drop below those required by the diver, O2 can be computationally or manually injected into the system from an onboard cylinder to replenish the supply. The ship started taking on water, rapidly flooding the engine room. Some consider them to be dangerous deviations from planned routes. According to the International Herald Tribune, "Avranas said he had known when he left the ship that there were 170 passengers and crew still aboard [but this was] the only way [to] ensure the safety of all those aboard", furthermore "after checking the situation from the shore, he said, he flew back to the ship on a helicopter, intending to go back on board. After evacuating, the 105 meter long ship began to sink. [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. Epirotiki Line. Must a captain be the last one off a sinking ship? Originally built as a passenger/cargo vessel, the Oceanos underwent massive reconstruction by the time she came to operate as a cruise liner for Epirotiki Lines of Greece. http://www.aolvideoblog.com/2007/08/21/crew-bails-on-passengers-of-sinking-cruise-liner/. "It comes from the tradition that the captain has ultimate responsibility and should put the care of others ahead of his own well-being in the discharge of his duties," says David Winkler, program director with the Naval Historical Foundation. Christos Nikolaou did not know what was said about him and his colleagues at the time. On the morning of July 12, 1952, Forges Chantiers de la Gironde launched the last of four sister ships in Bordeaux, France, under the name of Jean Laborde. A captain and his crew needlessly endangered the lives of those on board. Here's a link if you want to see a video of the story. Is the Oceanos still at the bottom of the ocean? With hundreds of people on board, the ship springs a leak, then . Concern showed on everyones faces, but although an immense amount of planning, effort, and money is poured into conducting a deep-diving expedition, the safety of those involved is always the priority. One of the most famous involved the HMS Birkenhead, which wrecked off the coast of South Africa in 1852 while transporting British troops to war. While the ship could have stayed afloat with up to four flooded compartments, depending on their location, five tipped into catastrophic territory. Does anyone know of the current whereabouts of former Captain Yiannis Avranas of the doomed Oceanos? He was never incarcerated and Epirotiki gave him command of a ferry until his retirement. A little more than an hour after impact, the crew began to evacuate the ship. I have made a mess and practically the whole ship is flooding, Schettino told Ferrarini while the ship was sinking. 2012 The Associated Press. [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 divers had penetrated 70m into the wreck with the aid of the scooters. Edward Smith went down with the Titanic, the notion that a captain must stay with his ship became part of folklore. . The ship they spotted in the distance didnt answer, but several others did. Ten minutes later, by the surviving operators estimate, he returned and gave them the order to send out a CQD, the universal distress call that was soon replaced with an SOS. Even if he's not convicted, it is highly unlikely that he'll ever command a cruise or cargo ship again because of the damage to his reputation, said Prof. Craig Allen of the U.S. Coast Guard Academy in New London, Connecticut. 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. Her bow hit the sand 92m below the surface, while more than 60m of her stern remained aloft; minutes later, she was gone. On open-circuit scuba, the exhaled breath is not fed back into the system but is expelled and is no longer useable. But his or her responsibility extends to executing the evacuation plan that all passenger ships are required to have and practice. Captain Yiannis Avranas told reporters in Durban that he did not desert the ship but left to coordinate rescue efforts from shore. And on the boat what could he do in addition., The circumstances were tragic and my responsibility was more than great. At this stage, eyewitness accounts reveal that many of the crew, including Captain Avranas, were already packed and ready to depart. Barry Coleman was yelling, Its a good day to dive, I can feel it in my bones! Well, a good day it certainly was! What happened to the captain and crew of the Oceanos? A coast guard member angrily told him on the phone to Get back on board, damn it!a recorded sound bite that turned into a T-shirt slogan in Italy. It remains so potent because of the almost mythic authority invested in ship captains, Allen suggests. The decision was to be his last as captain of the Oceanos. What happened to the Italian cruise ship captain? At 12:05 a.m. Smith gave orders to uncover the lifeboats and alert the passengers. Everyone on board the cruise ship Oceanos was safe and accounted for Monday, but survivors angrily accused the . 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), 5 Maritime Disasters You Might Not Know About, Titanic By the Numbers: From Construction to Disaster to Discovery, Why Nobody Remembers America's Worst Maritime Disaster, https://www.history.com/news/costa-concordia-cruise-ship-disaster-sinking-captain, The Costa Concordia Disaster: How Human Error Made It Worse. The British inquiry essentially exonerated him, saying he did nothing other captains wouldnt have done. Several estimated it was no more than five miles away. Coordinates: .mw-parser-output .geo-default,.mw-parser-output .geo-dms,.mw-parser-output .geo-dec{display:inline}.mw-parser-output .geo-nondefault,.mw-parser-output .geo-multi-punct{display:none}.mw-parser-output .longitude,.mw-parser-output .latitude{white-space:nowrap}320715S 290713E / 32.12083S 29.12028E / -32.12083; 29.12028 (Oceanos wreck). Many scenarios have been done, my brother. None of the 571 passengers drowned. But is it realistic to expect skippers only human after all to suppress their survival instinct amid the horror of a maritime disaster? Rescue helicopters began arriving three hours later, and winched passengers and remaining crew to safety, with Hills continuing in charge of the orderly evacuation. As water gushed into the ship and the three other crew members jumped overboard, Royer stayed in the wheelhouse to make a frantic mayday call and give the ship's position to the Coast Guard. In its investigative report on the 2012 disaster, Italys Ministry of Infrastructures and Transports found that the Concordia was sailing too close to the coastline, in a poorly lit shore areaat an unsafe distance at night time and at high speed (15.5 kts)., In his trial, Captain Schettino blamed the shipwreck on Helmsman Jacob Rusli Bin, who he claimed reacted incorrectly to his order; and argued that if the helmsman had reacted correctly and quickly, the ship wouldnt have wrecked. For a villain, there was J. Bruce Ismay, the White Star chairman, who got off in a lifeboat and was accused of pressuring Smith to maintain a reckless speed. (Reuter) | Aug 07, 1991 8:00PM EDT. Having reached the limit of Bretts safe air supply and time underwater, the divers returned to the anchor line to begin their ascent. He didnt give up on the mystery ship, ordering the crew of at least one lifeboat to row toward the lights, drop off passengers and return to Titanic for more. Passengers remained ignorant of the events until they witnessed the first signs of flooding on the lower decks. [citation needed], While trying to make up lost time, Oceanos encountered rough seas. August 3, 1991: An explosion shakes the engine room of the Greek cruise ship, Oceanos, as it sails off the South African coast. In another instance, Smith ordered that a lifeboat be lowered from the boat deck to the promenade deck, so passengers could climb in more easily. She headed into 40-knot (20m/s) winds and 9m (30ft) swells. / Updated May 22, 2010 / 12:42 PM PDT 20 PHOTOS . Ralph White/Corbis/Getty Images. He said he supervised the . -. [5], Oceanos sank bow first approximately 45 minutes after the last person was airlifted from the deck. The ship underwent several name changes, including Mykinai, Ancona, Eastern Princess, and finally, in 1976, under the .
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