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‘Pray the anchor holds’: Coast Guard evacuates some crew from distressed ship carrying 300k gallons of fuel near Unalaska

Photo courtesy of Ellis Berry
The Pan Viva, a 738-foot Panama-flagged cargo ship, anchored near Constantine Bay on Saturday.

The U.S. Coast Guard removed four crew members from the Pan Viva Saturday afternoon. The distressed 738-foot Panama-flagged cargo ship is anchored near Constantine Bay in Unalaska. The tugboat Gretchen Dunlap is standing by to assist the ship, according to several sources working on the response.

The ship is carrying 300,000 gallons of fuel and is anchored but struggling to keep its position against strong winds. Assistant City Manager Marjie Veeder said of the situation: “Pray that the anchor holds.”

Photo courtesy of Ellis Berry
The tugboat Gretchen Dunlap is standing by to assist the ship.

U.S. Coast Guard Lt. Commander Michael Salerno said that while there is no mechanical failure, the ship is facing weather conditions intense enough to put the vessel “in danger of running aground.” He said officials are weighing environmental impacts as well as the safety of life at sea.

A Coast Guard helicopter crew removed four of the 21 people aboard the Pan Viva Saturday afternoon: two cadets and two members of the kitchen staff. Salerno said these crew members were removed as a precautionary measure in case conditions worsen.

“Now they only have to hoist 17 folks, rather than 21, which speeds things up if things were to deteriorate,” Salerno said.

The ship is outside the more shallow areas of the bay, using 700 to 800 feet of anchor line, according to Salerno.

Sofia Stuart-Rasi
/
KUCB
Waves will likely remain agitated in Unalaska Bay through the remainder of the weekend.

A meteorologist with the National Weather Service said high storm-force winds will begin to come down Saturday night and early Sunday morning, and the slow-moving storm is not expected to ease until Monday. Waves will likely remain agitated in Unalaska Bay through the remainder of the weekend.

Steve White is the executive director of the Marine Exchange of Alaska, which has a 24/7 monitoring center and provides information to vessels about areas to avoid, including marine mammal sanctuaries and possible cables on the seafloor.

Many of the Marine Exchange’s monitoring protocols emerged after the 2004 Selendang Ayu oil spill. That incident involved a bulk carrier running aground north of Unalaska Island and led to the death of six crew members, as well as a major oil and cargo spill.

“The Selendang Ayu was broken down for several hours — I think 15 — before they notified anybody they were close to shore,” White said. “It was bad weather. I was active duty Coast Guard at that time and once we got on scene, we really couldn’t get the right assets out there in time to prevent what happened. We lost a helicopter in that. People died trying to pull [crew] off the vessel.”

White said, “That is a case in anybody’s mind who has operated in and around Alaska, and that’s why a lot of these procedures have matured to where they are today.”

KUCB will continue updating this story as it develops.

Correction: A previous version of this story mischaracterized the Selendang Ayu. It was a bulk carrier, not a tanker.

Born and raised in Raleigh, North Carolina, Andy Lusk is a writer, travel enthusiast and seafood aficionado who won the jackpot by landing in Unalaska/Dutch Harbor. When he's not hiking or working on his latest story, you can find him curled up with his cats and a good book. Andy is a Report for America corps member and an alumnus of New York University.
Sofia was born and raised in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. She’s reported around the U.S. for local public radio stations, NPR and National Native News. Sofia has a Master of Arts in Environmental Science and Natural Resource Journalism from the University of Montana, a graduate certificate in Documentary Studies from the Salt Institute and a Bachelor of Arts in Studio Arts from the University of Colorado Boulder. In between her studies, Sofia was a ski bum in Telluride, Colorado for a few years.
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