MV Derbyshire
Encyclopedia
The MV Derbyshire was an ore-bulk-oil combination carrier
built in 1976 by Swan Hunter
, as the last in the series of the Bridge-class
sextet. She was registered at Liverpool
and owned by Bibby Line
.
She was lost September 9, 1980 during Typhoon Orchid, south of Japan
(25°30′N 130°30′E); all hands (42 crew and two wives) were lost. At 91,655 gross tons she was, and remains, the largest UK ship (more than three times the size of the Titanic) ever to have been lost at sea.
to launch its own search for the wreck. The search, led by American shipwreck hunter David Mearns
, was declared hopeless by a major marine consultancy, but the union persisted even though they could only afford eight days of search. The wreck was found by Mearns' team in June 1994 when the eight-day period was almost up. The survey managed to deploy a remotely operated vehicle
, the Magellan, to take preliminary photos, which confirmed the finding. The strange orientation of the wreck was published in a report on March 12, 1998. This prompted the British Government to reopen a formal investigation into the sinking.
The formal investigation commenced on April 2, 2000. It eventually concluded that the ship sank because of structural failure and absolved the crew of any responsibility in the sinking.
Evidence from the underwater surveys showed that the closing appliances for nine ventilator openings in the bow section of the ship were missing; it was concluded that this had allowed seawater to flood into the ship and cause it to trim down by the bow. This adverse forward trim enabled storm force waves to batter the foremost cargo hold hatch covers causing them to collapse and the forward cargo hold to then flood with sea water. The same process was repeated on the number two and number three cargo holds. The additional weight of seawater, coupled with the heavy seas during Typhoon Orchid, caused the main hull to suffer a catastrophic structural collapse and the vessel to founder.
The 1986 grounding of the similar also resulted in its breakup, and faults found in two other sister ships lent weight to an earlier hypothesis of structural failure at a known structural discontinuity, at frame 65, just forward of the ship's main pump room. However, the findings from the 2000 formal investigation, which blamed deficiencies in the strength of the hatch covers, effectively ruled out this earlier hypothesis.
The Derbyshire Family Association was awarded the Marine Society's Thomas Gray Silver Medal in July 2004 for campaigning for better safety regulations regarding bulk carriers.
Rumours of crew negligence circulated in the marine industry early in the investigation were based on the leaked unfinished findings of the assessors appointed by Lord Donaldson of Lymington on behalf of the British Department of Transport
. These rumours were not substantiated by the investigation. They examined the 135,774 pictures of the Derbyshire wreck taken during two surveys by a research vessel of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
. These assessors, Robin Williams and Remo Torchio, both naval architects, concluded that amongst other obvious openings for water ingress, including broken ventilators, a mooring rope coming out of a relatively undamaged and unlatched fore deck access hatch led to the possibility that over several hours the vessel took on water in the storm to a degree that produced a marked bow down trim coupled with large waves crashing onto the first hatch cover and its eventual failure. The vessel then began to take on more water and sank very quickly.
,
departed the investigation before the stories of crew negligence circulated.
In 2001, Prof. Faulkner published a lengthy and highly analytical paper examining the Derbyshires loss in light of the emerging body of scientific evidence regarding the mechanics of freak waves. Among other things, it is now becoming more widely accepted in the scientific community that such rogue waves are far more common than previous mathematical models (and the older shipbuilding standards that stemmed from them) had suggested. Prof. Faulkner's paper won the Royal Institution of Naval Architects
's (RINA) award for excellence that year. Prof. Faulkner took direct issue with the conclusions of the original assessment, noting that given the meteorological conditions, and the length of time she was exposed to the peak conditions of the storm, it was almost certain that Derbyshire would have encountered a wave of sufficient size to destroy her. He concluded: "Beyond any reasonable doubt, the direct cause of the loss of the M.V. Derbyshire was the quite inadequate strength of her cargo hatch covers to withstand the forces of Typhoon Orchid." This conclusion has potentially dire implication for many earlier-generation bulk carriers, as they were all built to loading standards considered safe before the mechanics of these giant waves were understood.
(IMO) adopted new rules covering survivability and structural requirements for bulk carriers of 150 metres and upwards. The bulkhead and double bottom must be strong enough to allow the ship to survive flooding in hold 1 unless loading is restricted. It also adopted revised guidelines on ship surveys and a code of practice for safer loading and unloading.
Ore-bulk-oil carrier
An Ore-bulk-oil carrier, also known as combination carrier or OBO, is a ship designed to be capable of carrying wet or dry cargoes. The idea is to reduce the number of empty voyages, in which large ships only carry a cargo one way and return empty for another. These are a feature of the larger...
built in 1976 by Swan Hunter
Swan Hunter
Swan Hunter, formerly known as "Swan Hunter & Wigham Richardson", was one of the best known shipbuilding companies in the world. Based in Wallsend, Tyne and Wear, the company was responsible for some of the greatest ships of the early 20th century — most famously, the RMS Mauretania which...
, as the last in the series of the Bridge-class
Bridge-class OBO carrier
The Bridge-class OBO was a series of six vessels, which were constructed for Bibby Line in British shipyards. Three earlier vessels, Atlantic Bridge, Pacific Bridge and Ocean Bridge, had been completed in Japan from 1967 onwards. Ocean Bridge was almost lost and the master was killed in a serious...
sextet. She was registered at Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
and owned by Bibby Line
Bibby Line
The Bibby Line is a British company concerned with shipping and marine operations.Its parent company, Bibby Line Group Limited, can be traced back to the shipbroking partnership of Bibby & Hall, which was founded in 1801. It is and always has been based in Liverpool...
.
She was lost September 9, 1980 during Typhoon Orchid, south of Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
(25°30′N 130°30′E); all hands (42 crew and two wives) were lost. At 91,655 gross tons she was, and remains, the largest UK ship (more than three times the size of the Titanic) ever to have been lost at sea.
Accident and initial investigation
Full investigation of the cause and details of the accident was long delayed. Persistent refusal by the UK government to mount an inquiry prompted the International Transport Workers' FederationInternational Transport Workers' Federation
The International Transport Workers' Federation is a global union federation of transport workers' trade unions, founded in 1896. In 2009 the ITF had 654 member organizations in 148 countries, representing a combined membership of 4.5 million workers....
to launch its own search for the wreck. The search, led by American shipwreck hunter David Mearns
David Mearns
David Louis Mearns, born circa 1958, is a United States-born marine scientist and deep water search and recovery expert, long resident in the United Kingdom. He is famous for locating the wrecks of several ships lost during World War II...
, was declared hopeless by a major marine consultancy, but the union persisted even though they could only afford eight days of search. The wreck was found by Mearns' team in June 1994 when the eight-day period was almost up. The survey managed to deploy a remotely operated vehicle
Remotely operated vehicle
A remotely operated vehicle is a tethered underwater vehicle. They are common in deepwater industries such as offshore hydrocarbon extraction. An ROV may sometimes be called a remotely operated underwater vehicle to distinguish it from remote control vehicles operating on land or in the air. ROVs...
, the Magellan, to take preliminary photos, which confirmed the finding. The strange orientation of the wreck was published in a report on March 12, 1998. This prompted the British Government to reopen a formal investigation into the sinking.
The formal investigation commenced on April 2, 2000. It eventually concluded that the ship sank because of structural failure and absolved the crew of any responsibility in the sinking.
Evidence from the underwater surveys showed that the closing appliances for nine ventilator openings in the bow section of the ship were missing; it was concluded that this had allowed seawater to flood into the ship and cause it to trim down by the bow. This adverse forward trim enabled storm force waves to batter the foremost cargo hold hatch covers causing them to collapse and the forward cargo hold to then flood with sea water. The same process was repeated on the number two and number three cargo holds. The additional weight of seawater, coupled with the heavy seas during Typhoon Orchid, caused the main hull to suffer a catastrophic structural collapse and the vessel to founder.
The 1986 grounding of the similar also resulted in its breakup, and faults found in two other sister ships lent weight to an earlier hypothesis of structural failure at a known structural discontinuity, at frame 65, just forward of the ship's main pump room. However, the findings from the 2000 formal investigation, which blamed deficiencies in the strength of the hatch covers, effectively ruled out this earlier hypothesis.
The Derbyshire Family Association was awarded the Marine Society's Thomas Gray Silver Medal in July 2004 for campaigning for better safety regulations regarding bulk carriers.
Rumours of crew negligence circulated in the marine industry early in the investigation were based on the leaked unfinished findings of the assessors appointed by Lord Donaldson of Lymington on behalf of the British Department of Transport
Department for Transport
In the United Kingdom, the Department for Transport is the government department responsible for the English transport network and a limited number of transport matters in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland which are not devolved...
. These rumours were not substantiated by the investigation. They examined the 135,774 pictures of the Derbyshire wreck taken during two surveys by a research vessel of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
The Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution is a private, nonprofit research and higher education facility dedicated to the study of all aspects of marine science and engineering and to the education of marine researchers. Established in 1930, it is the largest independent oceanographic research...
. These assessors, Robin Williams and Remo Torchio, both naval architects, concluded that amongst other obvious openings for water ingress, including broken ventilators, a mooring rope coming out of a relatively undamaged and unlatched fore deck access hatch led to the possibility that over several hours the vessel took on water in the storm to a degree that produced a marked bow down trim coupled with large waves crashing onto the first hatch cover and its eventual failure. The vessel then began to take on more water and sank very quickly.
2001 RINA Analysis
The third assessor, Douglas Faulkner, Professor of Marine Architecture and Ocean Engineering at the University of GlasgowUniversity of Glasgow
The University of Glasgow is the fourth-oldest university in the English-speaking world and one of Scotland's four ancient universities. Located in Glasgow, the university was founded in 1451 and is presently one of seventeen British higher education institutions ranked amongst the top 100 of the...
,
departed the investigation before the stories of crew negligence circulated.
In 2001, Prof. Faulkner published a lengthy and highly analytical paper examining the Derbyshires loss in light of the emerging body of scientific evidence regarding the mechanics of freak waves. Among other things, it is now becoming more widely accepted in the scientific community that such rogue waves are far more common than previous mathematical models (and the older shipbuilding standards that stemmed from them) had suggested. Prof. Faulkner's paper won the Royal Institution of Naval Architects
Royal Institution of Naval Architects
The Royal Institution of Naval Architects is an international organisation representing naval architects. It is an international professional institution whose members are involved world-wide at all levels in the design, construction, repair and operation of ships, boats and marine...
's (RINA) award for excellence that year. Prof. Faulkner took direct issue with the conclusions of the original assessment, noting that given the meteorological conditions, and the length of time she was exposed to the peak conditions of the storm, it was almost certain that Derbyshire would have encountered a wave of sufficient size to destroy her. He concluded: "Beyond any reasonable doubt, the direct cause of the loss of the M.V. Derbyshire was the quite inadequate strength of her cargo hatch covers to withstand the forces of Typhoon Orchid." This conclusion has potentially dire implication for many earlier-generation bulk carriers, as they were all built to loading standards considered safe before the mechanics of these giant waves were understood.
Changes to the regulations
In November 1997 the International Maritime OrganizationInternational Maritime Organization
The International Maritime Organization , formerly known as the Inter-Governmental Maritime Consultative Organization , was established in Geneva in 1948, and came into force ten years later, meeting for the first time in 1959...
(IMO) adopted new rules covering survivability and structural requirements for bulk carriers of 150 metres and upwards. The bulkhead and double bottom must be strong enough to allow the ship to survive flooding in hold 1 unless loading is restricted. It also adopted revised guidelines on ship surveys and a code of practice for safer loading and unloading.
See also
- List of ship launches in 1976
- List of shipwrecks in 1980
- List of maritime disasters
- SS Edmund FitzgeraldSS Edmund FitzgeraldThe SS Edmund Fitzgerald was an American Great Lakes freighter that made headlines after sinking in a Lake Superior storm on November 10, 1975, with the loss of the entire crew of 29. When launched on June 8, 1958, she was the largest boat on North America's Great Lakes, and she remains...