The Ship That Sailed into the Huricane: HMS Bounty

Wed, 15 May 2013 13:13:00 GMT

Source: h2uh0.blogspot.com --- Wednesday, May 15, 2013
Why would an experienced captain of the HMS Bounty sail into the worst storm of the century? Were there structural problems aboard the 50 year old ship? Why put the ship and it's crew to sea when ports were available to weather out the storm? Here is an excerpt from an article that delves into these questions and more: The AIS records of the Atlantic during those hours are chilling: a sparsely dotted screen of vessels all making their way to port. Simonin attempted to counter growing vitriol online by reminding mariners of the adage that a ship is safer at sea than at port, but that idea was quickly denounced by other captains. Navy vessels and tankers may go to sea, they responded, but only in the interest of national security or averting major environmental disasters. Did Simonin think either applied to the Bounty ? She didn’t reply. At 7:30 p.m. on the 27th, Simonin received Walbridge’s scheduled email update. He told her that his new plan was to “keep trying to go fast and squeeze by the storm and land as fast as we can.” All else, he wrote, “is well.” On board the Bounty, the ship’s cook, Jessica Black, was no longer able to prepare meals. She and Christian handed out sandwiches and cold hot dogs. Barksdale was the first to sustain a significant injury, careening into the side of the vessel, jamming his right hand and rendering it all but unusable. Hours later he was thrown against a metal worktable in the engine room. He susta ...

Hansen and HMS Bounty Organization Sued for $90 Million

Sun, 12 May 2013 08:00:15 GMT

Source: gcaptain.com --- Sunday, May 12, 2013
The official USCG and NTSB reports on the sinking of Bounty aren’t out yet. Even so, the lawyers for Claudene Christian’s mother (also named Claudene) felt they had more than enough to bring suit against owner Robert Hansen and the HMS Bounty Organization. On April 6th, attorney Ralph Mellusi filed a lawsuit on behalf of Claudene Christian who is seeking a total of ninety million dollars for the wrongful death of her daughter. Citing Hansen’s knowledge of the rotted frames , the general disrepair of Bounty, the relative inexperience of the crew he employed , his decision to allow Bounty to sail from New London at all along with Walbridge’s actions during the voyage, the complaint calls the trip into Hurricane Sandy “… the greatest mismatch between a vessel and a peril of the sea that would ever occur or could ever be imagined.” The complaint alleges twenty-nine separate acts of “negligence, gross negligence, willful, callous and reckless conduct” by Hansen and the HMS Bounty Organization that directly led to Claudene Christian’s death. These allegations range from the mismanagement of repairs and alterations to the reckless actions that occurred during Bounty’s last days. There were the obvious ignored warnings about the approaching storm. There were warnings from shipyard personnel about the condition of the ship. There were even warnings from members of the crew that were ignored. After leaving New London, Bounty suffered numer ...