Oceanos Cruise Ship Sinking

Los Angeles (GaeaTimes.com) MTS Oceanos cruise ship sank off South Africa’s eastern coast on Aug 4, 1991 and a documentary of this incident was aired by Dateline NBC tonight. Here are some details of the ship and the incident that you might want to know.

The ship was launched in 1952 and was known as Jean Laborde. They were used in Marseilles Madagascar Mauritius service. After several name changes it was finally registered in Greece under the name Oceanos. After its successful cruise seasons, it was chartered by TFC Tours, now known as Starlight Cruise of Johannesburg. It was in a state of neglect having loose hull plate and a check valve stripped for repair parts. There was a 4 inch (about 10 cm) hole in the between the generator and the sewage tank which was supposed to be watertight.

In the time of last journey, the sea condition was rough. The sail away party was held inside in Four Seasons Lounge. The storm worsened and the ship was set eventually rolling from side to side. The crockery and cutlery began sliding off the tables and other things falling over. After a few hours, a muffled explosion was heard and Oceanos lost power after a leak in the engine room’s sea chest. Water was entering the hull and flooding the generator room. The generators had to be shut down as the water could have shorted them.

The water steadily rose through the hole and into the waste disposal tank. The water coursed through the main water drainage and spilled out from every toilet and waster disposal unite connected to the system. The crew realized the fate of the ship and fled in panic. They neglected to close the lower deck potholes. After ships’s SOS, the South African Navy and South African Air Force launched a massive mission to rescue the passengers and all 571 onboard passengers were saved.

Here is a video of the Oceanos Cruise Ship Sinking.