Prinsendam (ship, 1973)
 The burning Prinsendam , October 4th, 1980
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The Prinsendam was a cruise ship of the Dutch Holland-America Line , which entered service in 1973. On October 4, 1980, a fire broke out on board the ship in the Gulf of Alaska , which then had to be evacuated. On October 11, 1980, the Prinsendam sank . The rescue operation initiated by air is considered to be one of the most difficult in the history of the US Coast Guard.
history
Construction and service time
The Prinsendam was laid on September 21, 1971 at De Merwede in Hardinxveld-Giessendam and launched on July 7, 1972. On November 30, 1973 the ship was put into service as the smallest unit of the Dutch Holland America Line. The Prinsendam was the shipping company's first ship to be built exclusively for cruises. She was stationed in Singapore in the winter months and in Alaska in the summer months for expedition cruises and could carry up to 375 passengers.
The Prinsendam had a total of six passenger decks . Its facilities included the Prinsen Club , located directly under the bridge, which included a lounge, a dance floor and a bar. The ship also had another lounge and the Lido Restaurant with a view of the pool at the stern. The main dining room with 220 seats was located directly under the Lido Restaurant.
Fire and fall
Shortly after midnight on October 4, 1980, during a cruise in the Gulf of Alaska about 120 miles from Yakutat, a fire broke out in the engine room of the Prinsendam , which could not be extinguished and so spread to the upper decks. One hour after the fire broke out, Captain Cornelis Dirk Wabeke (1928–2011) declared the fire out of control and asked for support by radio.
Evacuation of the ship began on the morning of October 4 after the fire had spread further. Several coast guard ships and the tanker Williamsburgh , which was used as a platform for the rescue teams, took part in the rescue operation. Some of the passengers and crew had to be rescued by the coast guard by helicopter after the list of the ship became too big to fire off the remaining lifeboats.
The still-burning Prinsendam was supposed to be brought to Portland after the evacuation , but sank on October 11, 1980 around 8:30 a.m. local time in tow in the Gulf of Alaska. The evacuation of the ship after Hurricane Katrina is considered to be the largest rescue operation in the history of the US Coast Guard.
literature
- John Maxtone-Graham: Liners to the Sun . Sheridan House, Dobbs Ferry 2000, ISBN 978-1-57409-107-6
Web links
- Website to ship with video of the launch (English)
- Report on the accident on alaska.net (English)
- Strong arms . In: Der Spiegel 42/1980, October 13, 1980.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Joseph P. Blank: Last Cruise of the Prinsendam by Joseph P. Blank (Reader's Digest, November 1983, pp 237-264). In: alaska.net. November 1980, Retrieved April 22, 2019 .
- ↑ Flashback in history: MS Prinsendam fire and sinking 4 October 1980. In: Maritime Cyprus. October 9, 2016, accessed April 22, 2019 .
- ↑ IMO 7367421
- ↑ Peter Knego: PRINSENDAM 35th Anniversary Rescue Reunion. In: Maritime Matters. September 18, 2015, accessed April 22, 2019 .
- ↑ Dave Kiffer: A Cruise Ship Goes Down. In: SitNews. October 10, 2015, accessed April 22, 2019 .