MT Unirea
| Career | |
|---|---|
| Name: | Unirea |
| Owner: | Navrom |
| Operator: | Navrom |
| Port of registry: | Constanţa, Romania |
| Builder: | Constanţa Shipyard, Romania |
| Launched: | 1980 |
| Fate: | Sunk, 1982 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type: | Crude oil tanker |
| Tonnage: |
163,257 metric tons deadweight (DWT) Suez Canal Net Tonnage 79,621.22 long tons (80,899 t) |
| Length: | 299 m (981 ft 0 in) o/a |
| Beam: | 47 m (154 ft 2 in) |
| Draft: | 17.8 m (58 ft 5 in) |
| Depth: | 23.2 m (76 ft 1 in) moulded |
| Capacity: | 163,400 m³ (at 98%) |
MT Unirea was a Romanian-flagged crude oil carrier, one of the biggest ships of the Romanian commercial fleet. She broke up and sank in 1982 in the Bulgarian waters of the Black Sea, 40 nautical miles (74 km) south-south east of the Cape Kaliakra at a depth of 1,400 metres (4,600 ft) after a mysterious explosion.[1] The crew totalled 43 members of which 42 were rescued by Romanian and Soviet boats. The sinking of Unirea was classified by Lloyd's List as the largest ship accident of 1982.[2]
Investigations
The exact cause of accident is unknown but official reports suggest that during a vapor evacuation of the central number 3 tank an explosive mixture formed alongside the evacuation hole that could have been ignited by multiple sources but especially electrostatic energy. The explosion of the central number 3 tank had a devastating effect on the integrity of the ship triggering a series of explosions that destroyed the separating wall of the central and starbord tanks favoring the expansion of the volatile elements across the ship.[3] The fire that followed also contributed to the vertical breaking of the ship's shell and the eventual sinking. Other official reports claim that the accident was caused by a collision with a World War II mine. A different opinion (unofficial) came from some naval architects and marine engineers stating that the ship broke up because of incorrect ballasting (the ship had no cargo at the moment of the accident).[3]
The Romanian shipping company "Navrom" claimed the insurance payout, amounting to US$ 36.6 million. This action resulted in a thorough inspection of the ship's wreck by independent survey teams, employed by the insurance company from Lloyd's Register, Japan. As the inspection did not reveal any major faults in construction, the insurance was finally paid.[2]
Rescue operations
The rescue operation was coordinated from the Bulgarian shore and involved eight Romanian ships, Motru 25,000 DWT, Tg. Bujor 18,000 DWT, Mărăşeşti 18,000 DWT, Căciulata 8,750 DWT, Gostinul 4,800 DWT, Grădiştea 4,800 DWT, Topliţa 2,400 DWT and the Voinicul tugboat, five Bulgarian ships, Perun, Rusalka, Icar, Europa and Kiten, two Soviet ships, Ianghi Iuli and Gordelivi, and rescue helicopters from Romania and Bulgaria.[3] The Romanian ships Motru and Tg. Bujor each rescued 18 crew members, the Soviet ship Ianhghi Iuli rescued 5 and the last crew member, Gabriel Georgescu, was rescued by a Bulgarian helicopter after staying eight hours in the cold waters of the Black Sea. The only casualty was the ship's waitress Ganţă Elena.[3]
Sister ships
M/T Unirea was the second of a series of five Romanian supertankers which were constructed by the Constanţa Shipyard in the 1980s. The sister ships were as follows:
M/T Independenţa - collided in 1979 with a freighter at the southern entrance of Bosphorus, Turkey and exploded. She caught fire and grounded. Almost all of the tanker's crew members died. The wreck of the Independenţa burned for weeks causing heavy air and sea pollution in the Istanbul area and the Sea of Marmara.
M/T Biruinţa - Owned and managed by the then Romanian state owned Shipping Company (Navrom). In the 1990s the ship was passed to the Romanian private shipping company "Petromin", changing its name to M/T Iris Star. Finally the ship was bought by the Romanian shipping company Histria Shipmanagement having its name changed again to M/T Histria Crown. The ship was finally decommissioned after more than 20 years of service in 2006.
M/T Libertatea - had the same history (including ownership) as her older sister M/T Biruinta with the only exception that the ship is still in operation under the name M/T Histria Prestige.
M/T Pacea - was never fully completed. At the end of the 1980s it was passed to Czechoslovakia as a part of Romania's foreign debt.
Sister ship’s incident
The sister ship of Unirea, the M/T Iris Star lost power because of engine failure during her passage through the Bosphorus on 27 July 2000, and drifted towards Kandilli point. There was no extensive damage reported.
References
- ↑ "„Catastrofa navei Unirea – cel mai mare accident naval mondial din anul 1982”" (in Romanian). Telegraf Online. 2007-10-20. http://www.telegrafonline.ro/1192827600/articol/38507/8222catastrofa_navei_unirea_8211_cel_mai_mare_accident_naval_mondial_din_anul_19828221_ii.html. Retrieved 2009-10-17.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Scurt istoric al catastrofei petrolierului romanesc Unirea" (in Romanian). Romania: marinarii.ro. http://www.marinarii.ro/nave-de-istorie.php?id=1&name=Nava_Unirea. Retrieved 2009-10-17.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Constantin, Cumpănă; Andrei-Dorian Cumpănă (2007) (in Romanian). Catastrofa navei Unirea: cel mai mare accident naval mondial din anul 1982. Constanţa: Telegraf Advertising. p. 210. ISBN 9738752639, 9789738752634. http://books.google.ro/books?id=EGsTPwAACAAJ&dq=Catastrofa+navei+Unirea+%E2%80%93+cel+mai+mare+accident+naval+mondial+din+anul+1982&ei=X5fZSqKkKZyAzgTur5WhBw. Retrieved 2009-10-17.
