Oil tanker 'splits in half' after ship runs aground in stormy weather as desperate rescue mission launched to save crew and separate vessel also sends out distress call

Larger vessels cut in two; shortened; then welded together. Apparently, the welded seams gave way.

An oil tanker split in half after the ship ran aground in stormy weather as a desperate rescue mission is launched to save the crew.

Two Russian cargo ships carrying oil products were left severely damaged due to bad weather in the Kerch Strait between mainland Russia and annexed Crimea and have now requested assistance, the country's emergency services ministry said on Sunday.

There were 13 people on board the Volgoneft 212 tanker which was destroyed and ran aground, and 14 people on a second ship, the Volgoneft 239, which was drifting after sustaining damage, the ministry added.

The 212 is understood to have broken in half amid large waves close to the shores of Kerch, and according to Russian outlet Mash, the ship rapidly began sinking.

Russia's Kommersant newspaper reported that the Volgoneft 212 tanker was carrying about 4,300 tonnes of fuel oil.

The emergency services ministry said more than 50 people and equipment including an Mi-8 helicopter and a rescue tugboat had been deployed for the rescue mission.

Rescuers on board the tugboat were reportedly attempting to lift the stranded crewmen from the sea. They had been waiting for rescue for up to four hours, said reports.

'There is a crew of 13 people onboard,' the Russian Emergencies Ministry for the disputed Republic of Crimea.

-more at linky

Greta Thunberg is preparing an angry statement on the incident

None of that is good

Major ships sink a couple dozen times per year, world-wide. Lots of them simply go missing and are never found. It usually gets no news coverage at all.

This is an *improvement* - in the not too distant past, it was a couple hundred per year.

quote:

Originally posted by cas:

I laughed way too hard at this picture

It's the media so I'm assuming 50% of the article is inaccurate.

quote:

'Everything was done in a hurry….they cut out the centre [of the vessel] and then welded the stern and bow, forming a huge seam in the middle.

Every large ship has huge seams as they're fabricated independently as modules, each module is transported to dry dock by SPMT and/or crane, and each successive module is welded together. The key is how it's welded, the NDE, and the structural support.

As an example, here is a time laps of Maersk building a ship (for the blondes - it's not the ship in the article):

^^^ Yes, sensationalism for sure.

Thoughts and prayers go out to any survivors.

quote:

One unconfirmed report stated: 'Volgoneft-212 was built 55 years ago.

'It was originally a regular tanker, and in the 1990s it was shortened to 'river-sea' standards [meaning it could operate in both rivers and the sea].

'Everything was done in a hurry….they cut out the centre [of the vessel] and then welded the stern and bow, forming a huge seam in the middle.

'Today, this seam came apart after a powerful wave hit.'

I will assume the ship was shortened to this 'river-sea' standard in order to traverse river locks; it may have been too long for them.

Although being 55 years old and made/manned by Russians, I'm sure it was in tip-top condition.

quote:

'All this time, they were not properly serviced.'

Volgoneft was built in 1969, the other in 1973...that's the crux when analyzing this incident not the sensationalism that the news is trying to push around a ship being cut in-half and welded back together. Welding an insert is not uncommon, complex but, is done all the time. Russian built quality on a 50+ year old petroleum carrier

Correction: Soviet-built quality. Some portion of the steel would have been sold on the black market, most likely.

quote:

Originally posted by cas:

nice, here's the skit...

quote:

Originally posted by sjtill:
Correction: Soviet-built quality. Some portion of the steel would have been sold on the black market, most likely.

Yup.
Soviet/Russian steel wasn't in short supply, Ukraine after all was its factory and bread basket. It's just their overall quality and disregard for safety (like retaining worn-out ships) never has been a priority.