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Posted in Maritime Accidents,Texas Maritime News on February 2, 2012
V.A. FOGG
Yesterday, February 1st, 2012, marked the 40th anniversary of the explosion and sinking of the cargo vessel V.A. Fogg in Gulf of Mexico, resulting in the death of all 39 crew members onboard.
On February 1, 1972, the cargo ship V.A. Fogg –formerly the liberty ship SS Four Lakes— unloaded a cargo of benzene in Freeport, Texas and departed for the Gulf of Mexico to clean its tanks before heading to Galveston to drop off its remaining cargo of xylene. Just a few hours after her departure, the V.A. Fogg erupted in a massive fire ball while steaming at full speed and sank in just 100 feet of water, instantly killing all 39 crew members.
No official cause of the accident was ever determined however a report from the USCG and NTSB named a number of possible contributing factors including the highly flammable vapors present onboard the vessel, a newly installed boiler system that had failed several times, improperly operating cargo pumps, leakage between the vessels two cargo tanks and fumes that had occasionally entered the berthing quarters through the air conditioning system.
Once again, the deadly incident is just another example of how routine operations can go horribly wrong.
Today, the wreckage of V.A. Fogg wrests with a number of sunken Liberty ships and barges at the Freeport Liberty Ship Reef Site, entertaining scuba enthusiasts and fisherman from all over the world.