| More information : Vertical datum: LAT
Horizontal datum: WGS 84
Quality of fix: position precisely known - located by aerial photography
Charted as TORREY CANYON, entire wreck (dangerous wreck - UXO present) on Pollard Rock in several parts.
Vessel structure/Archaeological remains:
'Aground and in three separate parts in 500230N, 060744W. (Air photos, MS 1). Later reported that one section no longer visible. (ll). - Chart as STF - NM 706/67.' (1)
15.5.67
'Four divers, seeking bronze propellor, state vessel lies in 50 to 70ft of water. Completely broken up. All that remains are the steel plates which are lifted up and down by the swell, and other metal wkge. Diving was abandoned after discovery of unexploded bombs on site. (M Mannings, 19.8.70).' (1)
5.10.70
'Wreck reported no longer visible above water. Recommend chart as dangerous wk. (HMS HECLA, HN 2/76, 3.10.76). - R/P.' (1)
11.10.78
'The wreck lies spread out over a vast area in depths ranging from 14 to 27m and there are countless steel plates and frames scattered across the sea bed.' (2)
A damaged copper alloy gate valve, a length of stainless steel pipe, and a torn buckle from a deadlight, recovered from the wreck of the TORREY CANYON. (Droit 348/01) (11)
A damaged porthole, with no glass, recovered from the wreck of the TORREY CANYON in 50 03.669N, 006 08.267W. (Droit 249/02) (12)
A fragment of propeller from the wreck of the TORREY CANYON was sold at auction in 2002. (13)
Documentary evidence for the vessel:
Circumstances of loss:
'Struck the west side of Pollard Rock, Seven Stones reef, while on passage Mina al Ahmadi to Milford Haven. She suffered bottom damage over at least half her length and attempts to refloat her failed. Damage to oil tanks, plus oil jettisoned, caused widespread pollution around the coasts of SW England and France. To limit this the British government authorised the bombing of the wreck in an attempt to burn off the oil. It burned for several days eventually being blown apart by three explosions. (Modern Shipping Disasters; The TORREY CANYON, Cabinet Office, 656.085cab, HMSO). [Vessel had been 'jumboised' in Sasebo, Japan, in 1965. The original bow, still bearing name TORREY CANYON was moored for some years at Malta and used as a storage barge. Eventually scrapped, under name Fpso III, in Spain in 1985].' (1)
'The super tanker struck the Pollard Rock whilst steaming on a northerly course at 16 knots, and tore her bottom open releasing a flood of heavy crude oil. She went aground at 8.40am but the crew of the lightship appear not to have noticed her until 9.05am, when they fired warning rockets and hoisted the international flags 'JD', but by then she was already ashore. Several large vessels diverted in case they could assist, and amongst them was the Dutch salvage tug UTRECHT.' (2)
'The TORREY CANYON had impaled herself on the largest of the Seven Stones, tearing a 610ft-long gash in her starboard side hull plating. Eight-and-a-half days later, having survived three attempts to refloat her, two gales and an internal explosion, the tanker broke into three pieces, spewing out her remaining cargo of dark brown oil. This created an oil slick measuring 18 x 2 miles, which eventually came ashore on the south coast of Cornwall, creating the worst oil spill contamination ever experienced in the British Isles. The slick continued to expand until it measured 30 by 8 miles, and the stench of oil was evident as far inland as Truro, almost 30 miles away. With the three broken sections of the wreck still holding almost a third of the tanker's original cargo, the government took the decision to set her on fire and burn off as much of the oil as possible. She burned for two whole days, leaving a tangle of steel with very little showing above water... [in 1982] two blades of her huge propeller were removed by divers using explosives.' (3)
'The Master's first reports said that seven cargo tanks had been holed and that some 30.000 tons of oil had escaped... An initial inspection of the TORREY CANYON was made on the following day and this showed that the damage was considerably more serious than had first been thought: 14 of the 18 cargo tanks had been holed and the rocks had ripped also trough the bottom plating beneath the forward and aft pump room and the forward and aft fuel tanks. Moreover, seawater and escaping oil from the cargo tanks had penetrated the engine room via the aft pump room.' (6)
'The bombing raids began yesterday, when eight Royal Naval Buccaneers set off from Lossiemouth in Scotland. Since then, the RAF and the Royal Navy have dropped 62,000lbs of bombs, 5,200 gallons of petrol, 11 rockets and large quantities of napalm onto the ship. Despite direct hits, and a towering inferno of flames and smoke as the oil slick began to burn, the tanker refused to sink. The mission was called off for the day when particularly high spring tides put out the flames.' (7)
The response operation:
Environmental
'A wide variety of methods to mitigate the spill were tried. Burning the slick proved unsuccessful, and eventually the British Government gave orders for TORREY CANYON to be destroyed by aerial bombardment in the hope that all the oil still remaining on board would be burnt off... A distinguishing feature of the TORREY CANYON response operation was the excessive and indiscriminate use of early dispersants and solvent based cleaning agents, which caused considerable environmental damage. The dispersants were generally successful at their task of reducing the amount of oil arriving ashore and subsequently expediting onshore cleanup operations, but they were considerably more toxic than those used today and were applied in far greater concentrations, often being poured undiluted on slicks and beaches.' (4)
Rescue
'1967 A collective Framed Letter of Thanks was awarded to the Coxswain and crew for services to the tanker TORREY CANYON, which went aground on the Seven Stones on 18 March.' (5)
'Of the vessel's crew of 36, only the Italian Master and three hands were still on board [when the salvage operation commenced]; the remainder had been taken off by lifeboats and helicopters and put ashore.' (6)
'Particularly commendable was the action of the sailors F.M van Rixel and A.B. van Wijk, both of the TITAN, who without hesitation dived into the oil-covered waves to save Captain H.B. Stal and a member of the crew of the PRAIA DA ADRAGA, who had been flung overboard by the force of the explosion.' (6)
Salvage
'Some hours after the vessel went aground, her owners instructed our Company to undertake her salvage on the basis of Lloyd's Open Form - no cure, no pay. [Three]... tugs, the STENTOR, TITAN... and the Portuguese tug PRAIA DA ADRAGA [were] directed [to the TORREY CANYON]. The salvage equipment on board the four tugs [the fourth was the UTRECHT] was supplemented by consignments from Ymuiden; compressors, pumps and generators were taken by road to Schiphol airport, Amsterdam, from where they were flown to Exeter the same evening in three specially chartered planes belonging to Martin's Air Charter. A team of salvage experts headed by Captain H.B. Stal also left by air.' (6)
'The salvage experts were unanimous in the view - shared by the British government - that the best chance of preventing the further escape of oil was to try to salve the tanker in one piece and refloat her. Provided that the weather held out, the chances of saving her were at that time reasonable. The salvage crew made rapid progress on the Monday and Tuesday. The principal task was to seal of all the deck openings to the tanks in order to be able to put the tanks under pressure by compressed air and so increasing her buoyancy. Also the hoses were connected from the air compressors to the steam smuddering line. At the same time we were preparing the big submersible pumps for the use in the engine room. At about midday on the Tuesday a heavy explosion in the upper part of the engine room, which was fortunately deserted at that moment, brought everything to a standstill. Prompt action by the tug crews resulted in all salvage being taken off the tanker.' (6) This source shows several photographs of the vessel during its attempted salvage and continues in more detail, to outline the event. It is the account of one of the crewmen of the UTRECHT.
The ramifications of the oil spill:
'Th[e response] operation was partially successful, but did not prevent escaping oil from polluting many parts of the south west of England, causing the deaths of thousands of seabirds and threatening the livelihoods of many local people in the forthcoming summer tourist season. Later the drifting oil polluted beaches and harbours in the Channel Islands and Brittany.' (4)
'The shipwreck has coated miles of Cornish beach in brown sludge, in the worst environmental disaster to date. Oil pollution now stretches from the area of Hartland Point in North Devon, to Start Point, south-west of Dartmouth. Another slick is heading towards the French coast of Normandy. Dozens of ships have been spraying the oil with detergent since the start of the crisis, in an unsuccessful attempt to disperse it. The slick is still creeping along the south coast, and it is estimated it will reach the Solent within 10 days.' (7)
'An estimated 25,000 birds died as a result of the TORREY CANYON spill because the incident coincided with their northerly migration... ' (10)
Legacy of the event:
'The spill triggered the international Conventions, which form the basis for compensation for damage caused by tanker spills, and interim voluntary agreements to bridge the gap before the Conventions entered into force and became widely accepted.' (4)
'On 18th March, the Torrey Canyon, carrying 120,000 tons of crude oil, struck Pollard's Rock off England's Cornish coast, with devastating effects on the local environment. Discussions on the liability for such events resulted in the International Convention on Civil Liability for Oil Pollution Damage 1969, under which responsibility was placed firmly on the shipowners. Under TOVALOP, the Tanker Owners Voluntary Agreement concerning Liability for Oil Pollution, owners in the International Group agreed voluntarily to compensate governments for clean up costs in cases of pollution, provided at least half the world's tankers tonnage participated.' (8)
Legacy of the vessel:
'In 1982 her entire forepart, still intact, was refloated and converted into an oil storage barge' (3) also called the TORREY CANYON. (9)
Habitat
The wreck site stretches over ⅓ kilometre and is home to a wide variety of marine life, especially jewel anemones. Most of the wreckage is topped with kelp and therefore partially hidden. (14)
At the time of the accident, Torrey Canyon was registered in Liberia and owned by Barracuda Tanker Corporation, a subsidiary of Union Oil Company of California but chartered to British Petroleum. (16)
Built: 1959 (3)
Where built: Newport News, USA (3)(9)
Builder: Newport News SB & DD Co. (3)(9)
Owner: Barracuda Tanker Corp. (15)
Propulsion: Screw-driven, 2 steam turbines (2)(3)
Number of screws/Mchy/Speed(kn): 1ST.17 (9)
Boilers: 2 (3)
LBD: 297.03 x 38.25 x 15.70 m (3); former length 285.3 (9); altered from length 810ft to 974ft (10)
Tonnage: 61236 gt (1)(2)(3); 38562 gt (9) - this refers to the vessel's size before 1965, when she was enlarged in Japan by the insertion of a midships section (1); enlarged from 65,920 to 118,285 tonnes (10)
Cargo: 119,328 tons of oil (3); 860,000 barrels of oil (10)
Crew: 36 (2)(3)(6)
Crew lost: 1 (6)
Date of loss qualifier: Actual date of loss
Additional sources cited by United Kingdom Hydrographic Office:
Daily Mail, 7.8.90, p.8; The wreck of the TORREY CANYON, published by David & Charles
Additional sources cited in Shipwreck Index of the British Isles:
Lloyd's List 20.03.1967 (R); Lloyd's Casualty Report 1967 p48;
Additional sources not previously cited in this report:
The following examine the reasons for her grounding.
http://www.lboro.ac.uk/departments/hu/ergsinhu/aboutergs/lasttrip.html#Details%20about%20the%20ship
http://www.axfordsabode.org.uk/torreycn.htm - Is an account of the salvage operation by two HMS DARING crewmen.
The Times - Saturday, Mar 25, 1967; pg. 11; Issue 56898; col C;
Tuesday, Mar 28, 1967; pg. 9; Issue 56900; col A;
Wednesday, Mar 29, 1967; pg. 10; Issue 56901; col D;
Wednesday, Mar 29, 1967; pg. 11; Issue 56901; col G;
Thursday, Mar 30, 1967; pg. 13; Issue 56902; col C;
Friday, Mar 31, 1967; pg. 13; Issue 56903; col C;
Saturday, Apr 01, 1967; pg. 11; Issue 56904; col D;
Monday, Apr 03, 1967; pg. 11; Issue 56905; col C;
Tuesday, Apr 04, 1967; pg. 11; Issue 56906; col D;
Many of the Times articles discuss the implications of the oil spill for the people and wildlife affected.
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