(formerly Arcturus) Tanker (3m).
L/B/D:
641.3 × 84.3 × 34.8 (195.5m × 25.7m × 10.6m). Tons:
18,743 grt. Hull:
steel. Comp.:
38. Mach.:
16 kts. Built:
Howaldtswerke, AG, Hamburg; 1953.
The vehicle of what might have been one of the worst ecological disasters in the United States, the tanker Argo Merchant was launched as Arcturus. She led an uneventful life during her first eleven years at sea, but in 1964 she began to experience chronic problems with her engines, machinery, and crew. Between 1964 and 1973 the ship was involved in fourteen shipping casualties—five and a half times the average—including one collision in Japan and two groundings in Indonesia (under the name Permina Samudra III) and Sicily (as Vari). In 1973 she was bought by Thebes Shipping, Inc., and renamed Argo Merchant. In 1975 she received Bureau Véritas's highest rating, but following small oil spills at Philadelphia and Boston, the commander of the First Coast Guard District recommended barring her from U.S. waters, though that couldn't be done legally.
In early December 1976, Argo Merchant loaded 7.7 million gallons of crude oil at Puerto La Cruz, Venezuela, for Boston. Under Captain Georgios Papadopoulos, the ship carried two unqualified crew as helmsmen, a broken gyroscope, inadequate charts, and an inaccurate radio direction finder. At 0600 on December 15, the tanker ran aground on Middle Rip Shoal in position 41°02N, 69°27W—about 25 miles southeast of Nantucket and more than 24 miles off her intended course. The thirty-eight crew were rescued, but the shallow waters and the season made it impossible to offload the oil or move the ship. On December 21, 1976, Argo Merchant broke apart and spilled enough oil to heat 18,000 homes for a year. Northwest winds blew the 60- by 100-mile slick offshore, and coastal fisheries and beaches were spared the worst.
Hooke, Modern Shipping Disasters. Winslow, Hard Aground.
