Tanker explodes off coast off Virginia.

USA Today ^ | 2/28/2004 9:44 PM | AP Wire

[Rain-maker]

CHINCOTEAGUE, Va. (AP)

[Rain-maker]

A rather a large ship full of grain alcohol to be sinking in near the Chesapeake Bay with little media coverage.

[ServesURight]

Sorry, I outscooped ya!

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1087642/posts

[Rain-maker]

Post in breaking then.

[EUPHORIC]

Damn. Think of all those poor drunk fish. Betcha fishing is going to be REAL GOOD for a while...

[GladesGuru]

Actually, we used alcohol to preserve certain fish specimens.

That amount of alcohol would be diluted rather more quickly than you might think, however.

[Joee]

And then there was Texas City!!!!! Thank God this occurred far off shore.

[Triple Word Score]

How many may be lost?

How sad for their families. Ethanol will do it.

[xkaydet65]

WNBC TV reports that the ship was Singapore flagged. Singapore stands between Malaysia and Indonesia, two hotbeds of al Queda. While I don't disagree about the explosive nature of grain alcohol, when is the last time a tanker exploded and sank on its own in so short a time?

[deport]

Ethanol tanker explodes off Virginia coast

The Associated Press

February 28, 2004, 10:38 PM EST

CHINCOTEAGUE, Va. -- A tanker carrying industrial ethanol exploded and sank about 50 miles off the Virginia coast Saturday night, the Coast Guard said. At least two of the 27 crew members aboard were killed, and rescue crews were still searching for 19 others.

Six crew members rescued were in critical condition, said Lt. Chris Shaffer of Ocean City (Md.) Emergency Services.

The 570-foot tanker flying a Singapore flag made an emergency call just after 6 p.m., saying there had been an explosion on board, said Petty Officer Stacey Pardini of the Coast Guard Atlantic area in Portsmouth, Va.

The explosion occurred after a fire started on the deck of the ship, Shaffer said. He said 19 people remained missing as of 9:45 p.m.

Three helicopters, three Coast Guard boats and a C-130 plane were searching for survivors.

"When the rescue divers got on the scene the fuel tanker was on fire, sinking and there was people in the water," Shaffer said. He said the six people that the Coast Guard recovered were taken to Norfolk Sentara General Hospital were in critical condition.

Pardini said those rescued were taken to hospitals in Maryland and Virginia. Betty Turner, a nursing supervisor at Pennisula Regional Medical Center in Salisbury, Md., said her hospital had been notified about the accident but had not received any crew members by about 9:45 p.m.

Copyright © 2004, Newsday, Inc.

CLICK

[Rain-maker]

Tanker Sinks Off U.S. Coast, 2 Dead and 19 Missing

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Two seamen died and 19 were missing on Saturday after a chemical tanker carrying 11,000 tons of ethanol exploded and sank 50 miles off the Virginia coast, the U.S. Coast Guard (news - web sites) said.

The Bow Mariner, traveling from New York to Houston, Texas, caught fire and exploded at roughly 6 p.m. off Chincoteague, northern Virginia, and rescuers launched a massive search for survivors, said Lt. Bobby Dye.

"We're being hampered by the dark and of course the chemicals in the water, but the sea conditions are not too bad," he said, adding that six crew were safe.

The crew of the Singapore-flagged vessel were believed to be Filipino and Greek.

Industrial ethanol is used as a solvent in the manufacture of varnishes and perfumes; as a preservative; in the preparation of essences and flavorings; in many medicines and drugs; and as a fuel and gasoline additive.

Dye said the environmental impact of the accident was very much on the Coast Guard's mind, but the first priority was trying to save the missing seamen. Two helicopters, a plane and a number of vessels were involved in the search.

[Rain-maker]

Ethanol tanker explodes; many missing

PORTSMOUTH, Va., Feb. 28 (UPI) -- A tanker loaded with industrial ethanol exploded about 50 miles off the Virginia coast late Saturday and nearly 20 crewmembers were missing.

The Coast Guard assembled search aircraft and ships, rescuing six members of the crew after the tanker sank and recovering two bodies.

But the rest of the 27-person crew remained missing as darkness fell, the Coast Guard reported.

The Bow Mariner, a 570-foot freighter, radioed the Coast Guard shortly after 6 p.m. EST to report the explosion.

The Singapore-flagged vessel was traveling from New York to Houston with 24 Filipino and three Greek crewmembers, United Press International reported.

http://washingtontimes.com/upi-breaking/20040228-101905-8070r.htm

[Triple Word Score]

This post LOOKS fine, and it was useful, thanks. For some reason, however, it's messing up the formatting on my My Comments page. It's staying at the top no matter what else has come after it, and the formatting of all posts after it is strange--too strange to use, actually. Is it doing it to your My Comment page, deport? Thanks.

[montag813]

There are safer ways to transport Moonshine

[libtoken]

Link to AP updates on tanker explosion: http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/T/TANKER_EXPLOSION?SITE=VANOV&SECTION=HOME

[deport]

It hasn't stayed at the top of my comments page for me. It has moved down with as other comments have been posted. I have my comments set on 'brief' and they look fine to me. Not sure why it would be staying at the top of your comment page.....