Razor61
9th Dec 2004, 16:24
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- A Coast Guard helicopter crashed into the Bering
Sea with 10 people aboard yesterday while rescuing crew members from
a powerless bulk freighter grounded on Unalaska Island in
southwestern Alaska.
Four of the 10 people were picked up by the Coast Guard cutter Alex
Haley. Six were unaccounted for, the Coast Guard said.
The four were taken to Dutch Harbor on the island for medical
treatment.
The Selendang Ayu, a 738-foot-long freighter loaded with soybeans and
440,000 gallons of its own fuel, broke in two when it ran aground on
the island in the Aleutian chain, the Coast Guard said.
A Coast Guard rescue swimmer and the master of the vessel remained on
board, the Coast Guard said.
The Coast Guard evacuated some of the crew members from the freighter
earlier in the day by helicopter.
Unalaska Island, 800 air miles southwest of Anchorage, is home to
sensitive wildlife habitat and fisheries.
The carrier's 440,000 gallons of heavy bunker oil had been
transferred to inboard tanks and the fuel heaters were turned off to
thicken the fuel, so in the event of a spill it would not disperse,
Petty Officer Thomas McKenzie said.
The Coast Guard was transporting oil containment boom to Dutch Harbor.
The Malaysia-flagged freighter's main engine broke down for unknown
reasons on Tuesday. The freighter was carrying soybeans on a trans-
Pacific voyage reportedly for Japan.
Coast Guard cutters and tug boats had tried since Tuesday to halt the
drifting freighter, but 25-foot swells and 30-knot winds broke tow
lines on each attempt.
A tug boat attached a line to the freighter Tuesday evening, securing
it for 12 hours until the line broke and the vessel resumed its path
to shore.
The crew of the Selendang Ayu dropped anchor when it reached shallow
water, but it was lost in the rough seas after just a half hour.
The crew later dropped its other anchor, which for a while held the
freighter four-fifths of a mile from shore, said Coast Guard Rear
Adm. James Olson, commander of the 17th Coast Guard District.
The Selendang Ayu is a single-deck bulk carrier built in China in
1998. It is owned by IMC Transworld, a subsidiary of Singapore-based IMC Group
:(
ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- A Coast Guard helicopter crashed into the Bering
Sea with 10 people aboard yesterday while rescuing crew members from
a powerless bulk freighter grounded on Unalaska Island in
southwestern Alaska.
Four of the 10 people were picked up by the Coast Guard cutter Alex
Haley. Six were unaccounted for, the Coast Guard said.
The four were taken to Dutch Harbor on the island for medical
treatment.
The Selendang Ayu, a 738-foot-long freighter loaded with soybeans and
440,000 gallons of its own fuel, broke in two when it ran aground on
the island in the Aleutian chain, the Coast Guard said.
A Coast Guard rescue swimmer and the master of the vessel remained on
board, the Coast Guard said.
The Coast Guard evacuated some of the crew members from the freighter
earlier in the day by helicopter.
Unalaska Island, 800 air miles southwest of Anchorage, is home to
sensitive wildlife habitat and fisheries.
The carrier's 440,000 gallons of heavy bunker oil had been
transferred to inboard tanks and the fuel heaters were turned off to
thicken the fuel, so in the event of a spill it would not disperse,
Petty Officer Thomas McKenzie said.
The Coast Guard was transporting oil containment boom to Dutch Harbor.
The Malaysia-flagged freighter's main engine broke down for unknown
reasons on Tuesday. The freighter was carrying soybeans on a trans-
Pacific voyage reportedly for Japan.
Coast Guard cutters and tug boats had tried since Tuesday to halt the
drifting freighter, but 25-foot swells and 30-knot winds broke tow
lines on each attempt.
A tug boat attached a line to the freighter Tuesday evening, securing
it for 12 hours until the line broke and the vessel resumed its path
to shore.
The crew of the Selendang Ayu dropped anchor when it reached shallow
water, but it was lost in the rough seas after just a half hour.
The crew later dropped its other anchor, which for a while held the
freighter four-fifths of a mile from shore, said Coast Guard Rear
Adm. James Olson, commander of the 17th Coast Guard District.
The Selendang Ayu is a single-deck bulk carrier built in China in
1998. It is owned by IMC Transworld, a subsidiary of Singapore-based IMC Group
:(