‘Hoping for the Best’

Where are they now?
They were trying to get out to open sea, and try and skirt as far as they could around the storm. The last report I had from the Coast Guard, they were approximately 120 miles southeast of Galveston. The vessel is drifting southwest, which is a good location for it to drift. That takes it away from the oil platforms.

What happened with the Coast Guard's rescue attempt?
They made a valiant effort, along with the U.S Air Force, but it was just impossible to make it all the way to the ship. The helicopters were just unable to fly into winds this strong. The other thing that made it extremely dangerous is, if the seas are 20 feet and you're trying to hoist someone off of a ship, well, the ship itself comes up 20 feet and it will come down 20 feet. So you're looking at a 40-foot drop. It's just too risky.

Was the plan to abandon the ship to the storm?
You've always got a possibility the ship would be just fine out there floating, or it could be blown on shore. I don't know what would have happened if they would have pulled the crew off. Our number one concern was for the crew. You can always replace a ship, but we have 22 people on board.

Have you been able to speak with them?
Other people in the company have spoken to them, when they've had the opportunity to get through. Communications are somewhat sketchy. The Coast Guard can reach them because they're within radio distance, so we know from the Coast Guard, that everyone onboard is safe. The last report I heard, everyone was doing quite well, they're just riding out the storm waiting for it to pass.

How do you think they're passing the time?
Any type of satellite phone capability with them is wiped out because of the weather, but they're quite busy onboard that ship, I'm sure. I can just imagine, having sailed in the past, that they're trying to see if the engines can be brought up to full speed—monitoring the weather, monitoring everything around them and the ship itself, to make sure everything is safe; that everything is staying fastened down, that the doors and windows are secured.

What kind of damage could a hurricane do to a freighter?
On something like Ike, I really couldn't say. Our main concern is the safety of the crew. They seem to be in good spirits, so we're all just standing by. We are extremely thankful that the Coast Guard and the Air Force even attempted to fly into that mess to rescue them. We are hoping for the best for them, and our thoughts and our prayers go out to everyone at sea and all those along the Gulf Coast.

© 2008