SS Torrey Canyon
History | |
---|---|
Name | SS Torrey Canyon |
Owner | Barracuda Tanker Corporation |
Operator | BP |
Port of registry | Liberia |
Builder | Newport News Shipbuilding |
Yard number | 532 |
Launched | 28 October 1958 |
Completed | January 1959 |
Identification |
|
Fate | Sank after running aground on 18 March 1967 |
General characteristics | |
Type | Supertanker |
Tonnage | |
Length | 974.4 ft (297.0 m) |
Beam | 125.4 ft (38.2 m) |
Draught | 68.7 ft (20.9 m) |
Propulsion | Single shaft; steam turbine |
Speed | 17 knots (31 km/h; 20 mph) |
SS Torrey Canyon was an LR2
Design and history
When built by the Newport News Shipbuilding in the United States in 1959, she had a deadweight tonnage capacity of 65,920 long tons (66,980 t). However, the ship was later enlarged by Sasebo Heavy Industries in Japan to 118,285 long tons (120,183 t) capacity.[1]
At the time of the shipwreck she was owned by Barracuda Tanker Corporation, a subsidiary of the Union Oil Company of California, and registered in Liberia[2] but chartered to BP. She was 974.4 feet (297.0 m) long, 125.4 feet (38.2 m) beam and had 68.7 feet (20.9 m) of draught.[citation needed].
Accident and oil spill
On 19 February 1967, Torrey Canyon left the
Torrey Canyon struck Pollard's Rock on
In an effort to reduce the size of the oil spill, the British government decided to set the wreck on fire, by means of
Attempts to contain the oil using foam-filled containment booms were largely unsuccessful, due to the booms' fragility in high seas. Soldiers from 9 Independent Parachute Squadron RE were tasked to clear several Cornish beaches affected by the spill.[6]
Guernsey
When the oil reached Guernsey seven days after the grounding, authorities scooped up the oil into sewage tankers and siphoned it off into a disused quarry in the northeast of the island. Some time later, micro-organisms were introduced to see if they could break the oil down into carbon dioxide and water.[7] This was a limited success, so in 2010, a bio-remediation process was initiated to speed up the process.[8]
Aftermath
An inquiry in
The wreck lies at a depth of 30 metres (98 ft).[citation needed]
In popular culture
- Serge Gainsbourg composed and recorded the song "Torrey Canyon" about the incident.[10]
- The UK series Heartbeat ran an episode in which one of the characters lost his fortune by becoming a "name" (underwriter) for the Torrey Canyon.[11]
References
- ^ "Torrey Canyon (5536535)". Miramar Ship Index. Retrieved 15 February 2022.
- ^ "The Torrey Canyon's last voyage". Loughborough University. Archived from the original on 5 July 2009. Retrieved 13 November 2013.
- ^ Mounter, Julian (29 March 1967). "Night Strafe on Blazing Tanker Tide puts out fire". The Times. No. 56901. p. 1.
- ^ "On This Day 29 March 1967: Bombs rain down on Torrey Canyon". BBC News. 2008. Retrieved 13 November 2013.
- Look & Learn, no.858, 24 June 1978, p. 2
- ISBN 0-903530-22-8.
- ^ Bell, Bethan; Cacciottolo, Mario (17 March 2017). "Torrey Canyon oil spill: The day the sea turned black". BBC News. Retrieved 17 March 2017.
- ^ "Torrey Canyon oil in Guernsey quarry 'nearly' removed". BBC News. 17 November 2010. Retrieved 17 March 2017.
- ^ Rothbloom, A. Human Error and Marine Safety (PDF).
- ^ Simmons, Sylvie (2 February 2001). "The eyes have it". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 13 November 2013.
- ^ The Holiday's Over, retrieved 3 February 2020