Tanker Foundering In Rough Seas

Press, Volume CIII, Issue 30630, 22 December 1964, Page 17

Tanker Foundering In Rough Seas

(N.Z. Press Association—Copyright)

NEW YORK, December 21.

Rough seas battered a foundering American tanker south-east of Bermuda late yesterday, as a rescue ship with at least 34 survivors and four bodies headed for Puerto Rico.

The master and one mate of the freighter, the Smith Voyager (7060 tons) remained aboard their listing vessel in seas described as too rough to try getting them off.

reported dead, and two miss ing.

The 12,012-ton German freighter, the Mathilde Bolten, the first vessel on the scene after the Smith Voyager reported trouble 780 miles off Bermuda this morning, radioed the Coast Guard she was heading for San Juan 1200 miles away, with 34 rescued seamen, some in need of medical attention.

A Norwegian tanker, the Hoegh Fulmar (26,699 tons), said it would stand by until a Coast Guard cutter arrived in the morning. The cutter, the Rockaway, said radio reports from the Norwegian ship described the seas as “very high.” The Smith Voyager, bound for Cueta, Spanish Morocco, with 10,000 tons of grain, listed badly and was taking on water through her hatches because of cargo shifts, the Coast Guard said.

The ship, which last touched at Freeport, Bahamas, was listed in Lloyd’s Register as owned by Mr Sumner Long. No identification was available on crew members rescued, dead or missing.

Air Force search planes dropped two survival kits to the men on board but it was not certain that they hit the mark.

Each kit contained a radio, rations and a life-raft.