Fact file: What can happen to a ship
Fact File
Ships and the people on them are vulnerable to all sorts of
accidents. Here you can discover some of the many things that can
happen to the ship, its crew and passengers. The types of accident
are set out in alphabetical order, but often a combination of the
factors leads to the casualty Abandonment After an accident the crew might decide they are in less danger
off the ship than on it. They may abandon their ship,
taking to the boats or going aboard another nearby ship.
Occasionally an abandoned ship is reboarded by someone who hopes
they can save it and claim salvage money [ definition]. Breaking up Wind and waves can often cause a ship that has stranded [definition] to fall apart,
and it is said to be `breaking up`. Breaking up can also be
deliberate, as when a ship is sold to ship breakers who take it
apart to reuse the scrap metal (see scrapping [definition]). Capsizing A ship or boat that turns upside down but continues to float is
`capsized`. It can happen in bad weather if the cargo is not stowed
securely or there is not enough ballast [definition] to keep the
craft upright. Collision There are strict rules of seamanship to avoid collisions,but
human error, weather or equipment failures mean that ships still
hit one another. This is especially so in busy sea lanes like the
English Channel or the entrances to ports. Dismasting With their huge areas of sail and tall masts, sailing ships were
very vulnerable to changes in the wind`s force or direction. If the
sails could not be taken in or adjusted quickly enough, the masts
could break under the pressure. The ship was then said to be
`dismasted`. Explosion Ships carrying dangerous cargoes, such as petrol or explosives,
can blow up if they catch fire. Explosions can also occur in engine
and boiler rooms, which can lead to a fire, or damage the ship so
badly that it sinks. Fire Few things worry the seafarer more than a fire at sea. This was
especially so in the days when most ships were made of wood and
their hulls and rigging were covered in highly flammable tar. There
were many open flames onboard ship, as cooking and heating used
fires, lighting was with oil lamps or candles and many sailors
smoked. Foundering When a ship sinks because it springs a leak or is overcome by
wind and waves, it is said to have `foundered`. Grounding If a ship touches bottom for a short time, perhaps for a few
hours until it floats off on the next tide, it is `grounded`. It is
not as serious as stranding [ definition], although a
grounding can turn into a stranding if the ship does not refloat
soon. A grounding often means the ship has to be examined in a
dry-dock to check whether its bottom has been damaged. Hulking When a ship is no longer fit to go to sea and is left on a
beach, it is said to be `hulked`. Hulking was a common fate for
wooden ships, especially if they had lost some of their masts and
rigging in bad weather or were no longer seaworthy. But with an
iron or steel ship, hulking is less common as its metal has a scrap
value and the ship can be sold to a shipbreaker. Prison hulks were
old ships in which convicts were imprisoned, often before being
transported to a penal colony, such as Australia. Missing If a ship sinks far from land, the crew may not be rescued, no
distress message may be sent and no-one may witnesses it. The ship
is described as `missing`, `disappeared` or `lost without trace`.
This happened more often in the days before radio, but even today,
ships can sink so quickly that there is no time to send a distress
message. When a ship does not arrive at a port where it is
expected, it is `overdue`. If it does not turn up within a
reasonable time, the ship is `posted missing`. This means it is
feared lost and the insurers have to pay up. Scrapping Not all ships end their days as a wreck. It is more common for
modern steel ships to be sold for scrapping when their economic
life is over. Scuttling Ships are sometimes deliberately sunk by someone on board, or
`scuttled`. Unscrupulous owners may get the crew to sink a ship and
pretend it has foundered to claim the insurance money. In wartime,
a ship may be scuttled by its crew to prevent it falling into enemy
hands. If an enemy warship captures a ship, but cannot take it to a
friendly port, it may well scuttle it. Sometimes ships which come
to end of their lives are scuttled to create a reef to attract fish
or as somewhere for divers to practice. Stranding A ship that goes ashore on a beach or sandbank is `stranded`.
The smooth nature of sand often means the ship is undamaged and may
be able to float again at high tide. However, a stranded ship is
vulnerable to bad weather, and wind and waves might cause it to
break up or be driven onto rocks. Ships are sometimes deliberately
stranded to prevent them foundering [ definition], especially
if they have been damaged. The ship, its crew and cargo may then be
saved. Total loss If a ship stays in one piece after it is stranded or sinks in
shallow water, attempts are often made at salvage [definition]. If this is not
possible, the ship is described as a `total loss`. When the
insurance money has been paid, the ship becomes the property of its
insurers. If the ship remains intact but is so badly damaged that
it would not be worth salvaging and repairing, it is called a
`constructive total loss`. Occasionally, an enterprising salvager
might buy the ship, refloat it and have it repaired. Wrecked Although used generally to describe the end of a ship, `wrecked`
means the ship is so firmly wedged on shore that there is little
chance of it getting off again. `Wreck` also refers to the remains
of the ship after an accident. War losses In wartime, ships of the enemy are prime targets. In the world
wars of the twentieth century, thousands of ships were lost.
Methods of attack include using torpedoes, gunfire, mines, bombs
and guided missiles. The object is to hole the ship so that it
sinks, to set it on fire or force it to go aground.
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