Investigators say they still don't know what gashed two holes-one more than six feet long and the other more than two feet long-- in the bottom of the ship. Link to Article
The single-hull tanker was being pushed by tugboats toward the refinery when the pipe tore two gashes in its hull, authorities said. One of the rips was six feet long.
..."divers on Sunday found the 15-foot, U-shaped pipe, half-buried in mud. Investigators found fresh gouges on it, and paint scrapings that matched samples taken from the ship's hull."
The pipe, believed to be made of cast iron, protruded about three feet from the river bottom and was found about 700 feet from the Citgo Petroleum Corp. refinery in Paulsboro, N.J. The Athos I was heading there when it listed to one side and began gushing oil after an uneventful, weeklong trip from Venezuela.
He said the pipe measured three-feet by four-feet wide and had two broken brackets on it, as if it had been torn from its original location.
The Army Corps of Engineers, which is responsible for keeping the area free of silt and dangerous objects, surveys the anchorage twice a year to make sure the water is deep enough. The last survey, concluded in June, found no sign of the pipe, said Corps spokesman Merv Brokke.
A more thorough survey of the anchorage was performed two months earlier, in April, when an Army Corps dredging ship lost one of its giant propellers while heading down the river.
"The people on board didn't hear anything, the vessel didn't list, they saw no leakage," said Coast Guard spokesman Buddy Dye. "The ship captain would have felt something, the pilot on the boat didn't feel anything, and the Coast Guard guys on the boat didn't report anything."
The Army Corps of Engineers conducted a week-long search of the river bottom using sonar-equipped vessels. "You have to go back twice, and, if you don't see it twice, it was just a mystery hit," said Joseph Scolari, who was overseeing the search for the Army Corps.
Officials are wrestling with the question of why no other ships on the heavily traveled route hit an object that was capable of causing so much damage to the Athos I.
Divers investigating the listing Athos I on Saturday found holes in the underwater cargo tank closest to the rear of the vessel and in an outside ballast tank, said Jim Lawrence, spokesman for the tanker's Greek owner, Tsakos Shipping and Trading SA.
Sarubbi said the video tape revealed that the holes were likely caused by something striking the exterior of the ship, but sonar surveys conducted by the Army Corps of Engineers have yet to reveal what may have ripped through the 2-inch layer of steel.
Divers exploring the listing tanker Saturday discovered holes in the underwater cargo tank closest to the stern -- or rear -- of the vessel and also in an outside ballast tank, said Jim Lawrence, a spokesman for the Greek shipping company Tsakos Shipping and Trading SA.
We have a 15 foot u-shaped pipe that may be cast iron....3 - 4 foot wide...tearing a 6 foot hole and a 2 foot hole into 2 inch thick steel on an oil tanker being pushed by a barge up the river at around 9:30 p.m. The area of these holes is in the rear of the ship...which I am guessing from the above picure is the area to the left, where the big white crew and steering quarters are located. No one heard or felt this happen.
IMO this 15 foot pipe would need to be wedged into a stationary object, or into the river bottom in such a way to cause significant force against the moving tanker. Or maybe the reason that the pipe is now u-shaped is because it was connected to something, and then broke-off or bent when the tanker hit it.
Years ago, an accident like the Exxon Valdez (sp?) was only considered an accident. Post 9/11, I think that any significant incident is looked at from many more different angles.