Wikipedia

MSal-Salam Boccaccio 98

TheMSal-Salam Boccaccio 98was an EgyptianRo/Ropassenger ferry, operated byEl Salam Maritime Transport,that sank on 3 February 2006 in theRed Seaen route fromDuba, Saudi Arabia,toSafagain southern Egypt.

al-Salam Boccaccio 98in Genoa, 2001
History
Italy
NameBoccaccio
OwnerTirrenia di Navigazione
OperatorTirrenia di Navigazione
Port of registryItaly
BuilderItalcantieriS.p.A. ofMonfalcone,Italy
Laid down22 August 1968[1]
Launched8 June 1969
Completed30 June 1970
Refit1991
IdentificationIMO number:6921282
FateSold in 1999 to El Salam Maritime Transport.
Egypt
Nameal-Salam Boccaccio 98
OwnerPacific Sunlight Marine Incorporated of Panama
OperatorEl Salam Maritime Transport
Port of registryEgypt
Acquired1999
FateCapsized and sank on 3 February 2006.
General characteristics
TypeRo/Ropassenger ferry
Tonnage
Length130.99 m
Beam23.6 m
Draught
  • 5.57 m (as built)
  • 5.9 m (after refit)
Propulsion
Speed19kn(35 km/h; 22 mph)
Capacity
  • Passengers:
    • 1,000 (as built)
    • 1,310 (after refit)
  • Car capacity:
    • 200 (as built)
    • 320 (after refit)
Crew105 crew

The ship was carrying about 1400 passengers and crew. The majority are thought to have been Egyptians working in Saudi Arabia, but they includedpilgrimsreturning from theHajjinMecca.The ship was also carrying about 220 vehicles.[2]NoMaydayhad been heard from the ship and poor weather conditions hampered thesearch and rescueoperation. 388 people were rescued.[3]

The immediate cause of the sinking appears to have been a buildup of seawater in the hull, when the firefighters were trying to extinguish a fire in the engine room. This was compounded by design faults inherent in Ro/Ro vessels, where minor flooding of the deck can gain rapid momentum due to thefree surface effect.When the captain asked permission to return to port, the ship's owners ordered him to continue, despite knowing that there had been a fire. The owners were jailed in 2009 after their original acquittal was overturned.

Ship history

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MSBoccaccioin Italian domestic service before rebuilding, inTirrenialivery.

The vessel was built by the Italian companyItalcantieriin 1970 withIMOnumber 6921282 and namedBoccaccioatMonfalcone,ItalyforTirrenia di Navigazione.She was originally intended for Italian domestic service.[4]Her dimensions were 130.99 m (429.8 ft) length overall with 23.60 m (77.4 ft)beamand 5.57 m (18.3 ft)draft.The main engines were rated at 16,560 kW for a maximum speed of 19 kn (35 km/h; 22 mph). The vessel had an original capacity of 200 automobiles and 1000 passengers.[5]Five sister ships were built.

The vessel was rebuilt in 1991 by INMA atLa Spezia,maintaining the same outer dimensions albeit with a higher superstructure, changing the draught to 5.90 m (19.4 ft). At the same time her automobile capacity was increased to 320 and the passenger capacity was increased to 1,300. The most recent[when?]tonnagewas 11,799 GT.

Boccacciowas purchased in 1999 byEl Salam Maritime Transport,headquartered inCairo,the largest private shipping company inEgyptand the Middle East, and renamedal-Salam Boccaccio 98(Arabic:عبارة السلام 98,Arabic:سلام,romanized:Salam,lit. 'peace'); the registered owner was Pacific Sunlight Marine ofPanama.She was also referred to asSalam 98.

The sinking

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Its last known position was 100 km (62 mi) from Duba, when it lost contact with the shore at about 22:00EET(20:00UTC).[6] First reports[7]of statements by survivors indicated that smoke from the engine room was followed by a fire which continued for some time. There were also reports of the ship listing soon after leaving port and that, after continuing for some hours, the list became severe and the ship capsized within 10 minutes as the crew fought the fire. In a BBC radio news broadcast an Egyptian ministerial spokesman said the fire had started in a storage area, was controlled, but started again. The significance of the fire was supported by statements attributed to crew members, who were reported to have claimed that "the firefighters essentially sank the ship when sea water they used to battle the fire collected in the hull because drainage pumps were not working."[8]

Weather conditions

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The Red Sea is known for its strong winds and tricky local currents.[9]The region had been experiencing high winds and dust storms for several days at the time of the sinking. These winds may have contributed to the disaster and may have complicated rescue efforts.

The closest maritime weather report[10]for 3 February 2006 00:00 UTC was from MVGlasgow Maersk,call signMZGK7. Reporting from 27.00°N 34.40°E, approximately 150 km (93 mi) north-north-west of the sinking, thecontainer shipshows winds of 24.1kt(13 ms−1) from 320 degrees, with a surfacepressureof 1005hPa.Sea temperature was 25 °C (77 °F) and a significant wave height of only 45 cm (18 in).Visibilitywas good (10 km, 6.2 mi), with 7/8 cloud cover. There was also an activeweather frontoverlying the area,[11]clearly visible inMETEOSATimagery.[12]

Numbers on board

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The ship was carrying 1,312 passengers and 96 crew members, according to Mamdouh Ismail, head of al-Salaam Maritime Transport Company.[13]Earlier an Egyptian official had mentioned 1,310 passengers and 105 crew[14](however, the Egyptian presidential spokesman mentioned 98 crew, while the Transport Minister said 104).[13][failed verification][15]

Possible causes

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The reported point where the ship was last observed by coastalradar

Several theories have been put forward about possible causes of the sinking.

  • Fire: Some survivors reported that there was a large fire on board before the ship sank, and there are eyewitness accounts of thick black smoke coming from the engine rooms.
  • Design flaws:al-Salam Boccaccio 98was aroll on-roll off(ro-ro) ferry. This design allows vehicles to drive on one end and drive off the other, meaning, in theory, neither the ship nor any of the vehicles onboard need to turn around at any point. It also means that the cargo hold is one long chamber going through the ship. To accomplish this, the vehicle bay doors must be near thewaterline;unless these are sealed properly, water may leak through. Even a small amount of water moving about inside can gainmomentumandcapsizea ship, a phenomenon known as thefree surface effect.
  • Modifications: In the 1980s, the ship reportedly underwent several modifications, including the addition of two passenger decks and the widening of cargo decks. This may have destabilized the ship past its design limitations, particularly as its draught was only 5.9m. Combined with high winds, the tall ship could have been toppled easily.[citation needed]
  • Vehicle movement: Another theory is that the rolling of the ship caused one or more of the vehicles in its hold to break loose and puncture a hole in the hull, thereby allowing seawater to flood into the vessel.

Search and rescue

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An infrared image from a U.S. Navy aircraft showing a rescue vessel alongside a life raft fromal-Salam Boccaccio 98

At 23:58 UTC on 2 February 2006 the air-sea rescue control room atRAF KinlossinScotlanddetected an automatic distress signal relayed by satellite from the ship's position. The alert was passed on via France to the Egyptian authorities.[16]

On 3 February 2006 somelifeboatsand bodies were seen in the water. At least 314 survivors and around 185 dead bodies were recovered.Reutersreported that "dozens" of bodies were floating in the Red Sea.[17]

Rescue boats and helicopters searched the area, including four Egyptian frigates. Italian Coastal Patrol Unit Ships patrolled for more than 90 hours in severe weather conditions, and eight survivors were rescued byMFOEsploratore-class vesselsVedettaandSentinella.The United Kingdom diverted thewarshipHMSBulwarkwhich would have arrived in a day-and-a-half, but reports conflict as to whether or not the ship was recalled.[18][19]Israelisources report that an offer of search and rescue assistance from theIsraeli Navywas declined.[20]Egyptian authorities accepted a United States offer of aP-3 Orionmaritime naval patrol aircraft after initially having said that the help was not needed.[18]

Many survivors reported seeing the captain of the vessel being the first to leave the ship in a lifeboat [AP 2-04-06].

Similar incidents

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  • In 1915 theSSEastlandwas raised from the Chicago River after capsizing earlier the same year when the ship's limit of 2752 passengers was exceeded; a total of 845 passengers and crew were killed.
  • The sinking ofal-Salam Boccaccio 98was compared to that of the 1987MSHerald of Free Enterprisedisaster, which killed 193 passengers.
  • In 1991 another Egyptian ferry,Salem Express,sank off the coast of Egypt after hitting a smallhabilireef.464 Egyptians lost their lives. The bodies were recovered and buried on land, asIslamforbidsburial at sea.
  • In 1994, theMSEstoniasank, claiming 852 lives.
  • On 26 September 2002 theMVLe Joola,aSenegalesegovernment-owned ferry, capsized off the coast ofThe Gambiakilling at least 1,863 people.
  • On 17 October 2005,Pride of al Salam 95also sank in the Red Sea after being struck by theCypriot-registered cargo shipJebal Ali.In that accident, two people were killed and another 40 injured, some possibly during a stampede to leave the sinking ship. After evacuating all the ferry passengers and crew,Jebal Aliwent astern andPride of al Salam 95sank in about 3½ minutes.

Trial of owners

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In July 2008 the owner ofal-Salam Boccaccio 98,Mamdouh Ismail, along with his son Amr Ismail and two others were acquitted of wrongdoing in connection with the disaster by an Egyptian court. An earlier parliamentary inquiry blamed Ismail's company for the disaster, saying they had operated the ferry despite serious defects. Also, the recovered data recorder proved that the ferry's owner knew there had been a fire on board but gave orders to continue on instead of returning to port as the captain had requested.[21]Family members of the victims felt the ruling was brought about by corruption as Ismail is a member of Egypt's upper house and is very well connected.[22]

On 11 March 2009, after the initial acquittal was overturned in a hearing presided over by Judge Khaled Badereldin, Mamdouh Ismail was sentenced to seven years in prison. Two other employees of the company were sentenced to three years in prison each.[citation needed]

In May 2020, The Court of Justice of the European Union judged thatThe victims of the sinking of a vessel, which sailed under the flag of Panama, may bring an action for damages before the Italian courts against the ItalianClassification SocietyRINA (Registro Italiano Navale), which classified and certified that vessel.[23]

References

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  1. ^"M/V al-Salam Boccaccio 98"(PDF).RINA.11 May 2006. Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 11 May 2006.
  2. ^AP Wire | 02/03/2006 | Most of 1,400 on doomed ferry feared lost, SanLuisObispo.com.
  3. ^"Egypt ferry probe raps officials".BBC News.19 April 2006.
  4. ^Overview Press Ltd,Ferries 2004 Southern Europe.
  5. ^Maritime Knowledge Centre."Information Resources on the Al Salam Boccaccio 98"(PDF).International Maritime Organization. Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 28 August 2013.Retrieved18 July2012.
  6. ^"Ferry carrying 1,300 sinks in Red Sea".Reuters.3 February 2006.[dead link‍]
  7. ^"Reports of survivor statements".BBC News.4 February 2006.
  8. ^Williams, Daniel (4 February 2006)."Report of crew statements".The Washington Post.Retrieved13 May2010.
  9. ^"Egyptian passenger ship sinks in Red Sea; 20 confirmed dead; 100 survivors rescued".CJAD 800.3 February 2006.[dead link‍]
  10. ^National Data Buoy Center.
  11. ^Image:Gfs10.prp.012.tropio.gif
  12. ^"Eumetsat".Archived from the original on 27 September 2007.Retrieved4 February2006.{{cite web}}:CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  13. ^ab"Most of 1,400 on Doomed Ferry Feared Lost".Yahoo.Associated Press. 3 February 2006. Archived fromthe originalon 16 February 2006.Retrieved17 September2015.
  14. ^"Bodies found in water as Egyptian ferry sinks".Times Online.3 February 2006. Archived fromthe originalon 11 March 2007.Retrieved17 September2015.
  15. ^"Hundreds missing after Red Sea ferry sinks".Australian Broadcasting Corporation.3 February 2006.Retrieved17 September2015.
  16. ^"Passenger Ferry Sinks in Red Sea".Sky News.3 February 2006.
  17. ^"Ship with 1,400 sinks in Red Sea".CNN.3 February 2006.
  18. ^ab"Dozens of Bodies, Survivors in Red Sea".The New York Times.3 February 2006.[dead link‍]
  19. ^"Many Dead as Egyptian Ferry Sinks".BBC News.3 February 2006.
  20. ^"Egyptian port swarmed by victims' kin".Jerusalem Post.Associated Press. 3 February 2006.Retrieved17 September2015.
  21. ^"Grief And Outrage in Egypt".CNN. 31 July 2008.
  22. ^"Anger at Egyptian ferry verdict".BBC News.27 July 2008.
  23. ^"The victims of the sinking of a vessel, which sailed under the flag of Panama, may bring an action for damages before the Italian courts against the Italian organisations which classified and certified that vessel"(PDF).Court of Justice of the European Union.7 May 2020.
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27°01′59″N34°52′59″E/ 27.033°N 34.883°E/27.033; 34.883

al-Salam Boccaccio

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