This Ship Cost $2.5 Billion in 30 Minutes
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- Опубликовано: 8 июл 2023
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Thanks for watching.
If you enjoyed this video and would like to watch more videos from this channel without any ads, consider joining our Patreon.
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You can join for free or select a membership with benefits ranging from ad free videos through to early access and live q and a calls.
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I was a kid when this happened. My dad was stationed USCG Valdez. I was 6. He was the storekeeper. I remember going down the harbor and seeing the dead wildlife everywhere. It was one of the saddest events I have ever seen. We weren't allowed to help with the cleaning of animals since I was 6 and my brother was 7. My mother did the grueling task of cleaning birds. She would come home and cry. I never knew the whole story till now. Thank you. I never knew how or why this happened. Once again keep up the amazing investigative research in making these videos.
I can’t imagine cleaning sea life all day and having to go back and do it all over again for months.
@waterlinestories it wasn't good at all. It impacted our everyday lives for the remaining of our tour there. We left in 91 to go to Corpus Christie, Texas. She volunteered to do it again after deep water horizon happened. So that's two of the worst spills we have dealt with now.
My god so these oil spills happen wherever your family settles… 🫣
@@jonathansmyth3064 that sucks man. I’m not sure if you’re familiar with him but there’s a Scottish football (soccer) player called Kenny Dalglish who by total bad luck happened to be at 3 of the worst disasters in football, he was a fan at the Ibrox fire in Glasgow, a player at the wall collapse in Heysel in Belgium and a manager during the crush at Hillsborough in Sheffield.
I’m not sure I could keep going to games after seeing that much horror.
Hope your mom is ok. He mentioned all the extremely toxic chemicals used to ‘clean up’ the accident that did affect people.
It is almost comical how ruthless exon, shell & other oil companies are. Using cheap but risky ship designs, lying about the contamination, delaying fines for so long that they’re worth just a fraction of what they should’ve been.
And hiking the prices to protect profits.
And fox news has somehow managed to twist peoples minds up sufficiently that i hear its lobotomite viewers discuss exxon today as if they need our sympathy and support.
If any of us had oil CEO money I bet we would do the same.
edit: Jesus Christ all of you calling me a sociopath, I'm not trying to justify what they do; their businesses do massively harm the environment. I don't think they actively want to hurt the land, especially people, but I believe it's not difficult for them to look the other way when others take shortcuts especially when you aren't the one 'pulling the trigger' if you will from the comfort of an office.
Maybe. I’ll never know.
You have to remember when these ships were made. This was very early in engineering/shipyard tech. Now the ballast tanks are incorporated into double skin design. So the ship can be empty and they can fill the ballast tanks making a better ride in Rough weather.
Hi there,
I actually sailed on the Exxon Valdez then named “ S/R Mediterranean “ and then “ Mediterranean “ as Chief Mate in 2006 and also docked her in Dubai.
I was a ExxonMobil Cadet in 1995 and she was transferred from the US fleet to Asia Fleet in 2003.
The chair used by the Captain was locked up in the Bridge aft locker and still remains there since 1986.
One of the most different ships i have sailed on - built in 1986 in USA and only ever meant to trade Alaska - California she was difficult to load and discharge in conventional ports being having the Ring Main System of crude oil tanker piping.
She was finally scrapped in 2009/10 not sure of the year but in China.
Rgds Capt JD
Always good to hear more little details. Thanks for sharing
I’m in the petroleum transportation industry and have sailed in and out of Valdez multiple times to load and discharge to a tank farm. This incident has been the cause of many regulations. Double hulls are the requirement now for all tank ships and barges I’m aware of now. Multiple companies ran single hull vessels right up the the deadline . The oil companies will lobby hard for more relaxed regulations. I personally have no issue with being held to high standards on environmental safety.
Bingo ! OPA 90 came into Affect Double hull Tankers !
Same here. There is no comparison to how things were done before the accident and how they are done now. Totally different worlds. But the risk remains and we must always be aware of it.
too bad y'all weren't held to the high standard before this fuster cluck.
I find your reasoning strange, the oil companies lost a lot of money why would they want to return to running it as high risk with immense added cost in case of a disaster? The actual answer is a little bit more complex, this disaster was due to bad decisions by those in charge at the time, a double hull would also not have stopped the Exxon Valdez spill, it would had done nothing what so ever, as the gauges made by the contact were all well above 3 meters deep into the Exxon Valdez a double hull would had done nothing. Government rules doesnt do anything but they claim to protect us, while in reality all they do is make us poorer. Because we the consumers have to pay for that double hull in the end. Sure its less then a cent per gallon of petrol, but these things stack up.
The question you have to ask yourself is this: does Exxon Valdez wants to make money or lose money. If you side on the lose money side then yes your reasoning works out, otherwise it doesnt. They lost a crap-ton of money from this disaster, do they want to keep on doing that? Then yes your reasoning works out. Otherwise it doesnt work out, they would have wanted to sell that oil and made a lot of money. They didnt want this accident to happen no more then we do, they wanted to make money so they wanted to sell the oil, what they got was a horrible disaster with extreme costs they had to pay.
@@daniellassanderagreed and shit happens, why do governments always benefit from the disaster, what do they do with the money from the astronomical fines, I can assure you it goes in one way or another into their own benefits and interests l
as someone who spent 10 years of my life working for ExxonMobil i can confirm that the company still internally blames "a drunk sailor" for the Exxon Valdez when the reality of the situation is Exxon had very shady company practices, pushed crews too hard, demanded too much, and cut too many corners. something was bound to break and this was the result.
They also promised to have spill response equipment ready 24/7/365 when they built the terminal. When the Valdez hit the reef, most of it had been let go or unmaintained and what they did have on hand was buried under the snow and took several days to dig out. The fishing fleet, who found ourselves suddenly out of a fishery, responded like they were giving away money. (They were, btw). I've had several pretty good offers to work for Exxon Shipping (or Veco) over the years, and would rather starve.
And that lead shady character was Frank Iarossi. After Exxon fired him, everywhere he went afterward, large maritime accidents followed him. It's amazing how most of these big accidents mostly stopped all the sudden once he retired.
... that's the mentality and culture of #PredatoryCapitalists, and it's infiltrated every level of Government in the U.S. 🇺🇸 ...and globally 🌎
從來沒有煮過沙子來做腳...但我看到人們用奶油鴨毛來搞笑...只是被告知天空很快就會結束。
He wa cleared of the being intoxicated charge. However, I also thought that the captain had sleep apnea, or sleep deprivation was a contributing factor.
I have friends who are still affected by this in Alaska, it’s shameful that people who were kids when it happened are still suffering the consequences
Just curious how?
@@crissd8283 they still clean globs of oil off the beaches, the cannery on land was closed in favor of clean boats putting families out of work, the wildlife is still recovering…… it’s sad really.
Little ironic that Joseph Hazelwood, the drunk captain of the Exon Valdez passed away from cancer in July 2022. A year ago at the age of 75. To be a captain on a ship and to get intoxicated is not a novel situation. It becomes a problem if your ship runs aground. People have a drink when they think they are safe to do so. I doubt he drank in the middle of the day. Sadly his reputation was destroyed because of a bad decision and a bad day.
@@Meipmeep And like they mentioned at the end..many workers were contaminated by the chemicals used to disperse the oil and ended up with cancer and ill health. I can see how horrible this would be for the kids of these families.
從來沒有煮過沙子來做腳...但我看到人們用奶油鴨毛來搞笑...只是被告知天空很快就會結束。
I've worked with people who had worked on the VALDEZ, but not on at time of the accident, and people who were on the BATON ROUGE. I also did a lot of research into this accident when I was in college. There is SOOO much more. It is likely that Cousins didn't turn the Iron Mike off, and that Kagan (the helmsman) was trying to hand steer while on the autopilot (unlike a plane, manual inputs on a ship do not over ride the auto pilot). As such, all tankers are no required to have an alarm that sounds if you turn the wheel while on autopilot.
Hazelwood was a great seaman but not a good manager of people. To him, the maneuver he left Cousins to perform was simple, but he didn't understand that Cousins had limited experience and was extremely fatigued and as such, it was dangerous to leave him alone to conduct the departure.
Nailed it.
The GREED of those people...😮
I was running a herring tender in Sitka when this happened - our next stop was PWS, then on to lower Cook Inlet and then Tokiak. The owner fired me and hired his brother-in-law to run the boat on a spill "cleanup" contract with the crooks at Veco which involved being tied to the dock in Seward most of the summer. I filed a claim for lost wages for that year and the next two based on what I made the year before. The fishery never really recovered. My $60k claim was reasonable, not padded and nowhere near what I probably could have made, and they literally appealed everything as long as possible, until finally finding a sympathetic judge. After nearly 20 years of waiting, I got . . . wait for it . . . $438.00. Not as bad as some people; many passed on, lost their boats, houses, etc. I have no beef with Joe, even though he was the captain and therefore responsible, but they kept him on even though they were aware of his problems with alcohol. The watch officer putting someone who didn't know port from starboard on the helm was probably not the best idea either. I honestly don't hate those guys, but corporate lawyers? Rot in hell, please after dying of syphilis!
Geez
Sounds about right for the US
What a shame.
And Ghomorah and aids and herpes.
Corporate lawyers? Not just them. The entire corporate structure. Utter scum.
I remember working in a mechanical workshop here in australia not long after this event. We had a 44 gallon drum full of petrol in eye shot of the spot we used to have our morning lunch. It had a sticker on it that read "Exxon, caring for the environment"
Catchey slogan to trick the plebs
Saw quite a few bumper-stickers after this tragedy that said "Exxon cleans Up" over a field
of $$$$ and skull-and-cross-bones....
And in the early 90s, or mid 90s, the Unabomber took out someone who helped Exxon with their PR as well after this incident as well, and cited this as the reason why, IIRC
Yup !! He scared the crap out of alot of A-holes . I wonder what his thoughts would have been about these A-holes developing A.I. ??
I appreciate the effort you put into your videos , the illustrations, your narration , and neutral unbiased presentation of the facts are top notch keep up the great work
Thanks. I appreciate that.
@@waterlinestories yes, I love the topics you cover. I have the same fascination with these tragedies you cover. Thanks for the quality you put into your work.
It's disgusting how much exploitation, suffering, and destruction comes out of corporate greed and those in power unwillingly to regulate them. It doesn't matter to them how many lives are lost and mistreated, it doesn't matter to them if they're making the planet unlivable. All they care about are profits.
what have you done to counter it?
@@thewhitefalcon8539 I'm one individual going up against very powerful interests and systems rooted in corruption. Even with many other individuals that feel the same way, we don't have much power outside of advocacy and fighting for less exploitation of the planet and the workers who make our economies run by trying to get people to vote out those that continue letting broken and corrupt systems fester while lives are lost, democracies are eroded, and our planet is made uninhabitable for us and other creatures.
@@thewhitefalcon8539your mom alexc, your mom
@@thewhitefalcon8539 Just one hundred (100) companies are responsible for 71% of global emissions of greenhouse gasses. The lie that capitalism wants you to believe is that you as an individual are responsible for rapid climate change, and not them. When you pose questions like this one, you are honking your clown nose.
@@thewhitefalcon8539don't vote Republican for starters
Even though I'm old enough to remember Exxon Valdez accident I never knew the details of it. So thanks again for another great video. 👏👏
👍🏻
I worked at Petro Terminal de Panama where the Exxon Valdez was headed to offload it's crude. The captain of this tanker was a well known drinker, he always had a taxi waiting for him when his ship came in. Basically he'd tie up his boat and go out to town and come back just before sailing. So there you go. All that responsibility and doing that !
Like So many of the old salty seadogs
hella based
What's wrong with a little liqueur to wet the whistle?
@@bobbyrayofthefamilysmith24 Really???
@@bobbyrayofthefamilysmith24nothing at all, so long as it doesn't lead to one of the world's worst manmade ecological disasters ever.
Loving the "actual imagery" tags on some of the clips. Really adds to the immersion :)
Good to hear. People have been asking for it.
@@waterlinestories I fully agree. On some of the older videos it was sometimes difficult to differentiate the authentic footage from stock footage. A great change :)
11:37 NOT actual imagery of the Valdez spill. The aircraft shown wasn't built until 2009. The photo was from the BP spill in the Gulf from 2010.
It's become clear to me from watching these videos that the problem is not that we need to "just stop oil" but that the problem is cascading negligence by operators and decision-makers leading to catastrophic failures. The problem is largely complacency and negligence.
"Every catastrophic event is preceded by a cascading series of failures." -Dale McConnell
when these cascading set of failures are because a company cut corners then its not always the operators fault. unfortunately companies are incentivised to cut production costs as much as possible and maximise profits which often leads to easily preventable disasters, or turns it into a ticking time bomb just waiting to happen.
what needs to change are the laws, however a lot of these companies have been lobbying for years to keep out of date profitable legislation/regulations in and to not vote for things which reduce profit.
for example the minimum wage in America is notoriously low and there has been lobbying for some time to keep it that way.
not to mention the horrific worker rights compared to Europe.
THE problem HAS ALWAYS BEEN the negligence AND complacency, NOT the actual use of ‘fossil fuels’. WE, OUR COUNTRY..AND the world would never had gotten MUCH past the ‘discovery of FIRE’ as neanderthals..cave men (a little attempt @ humor but even I find it falls short I suppose), and if you REALLY THINK about it you’ll know I might be simplifying it quite a bit but not that far off either..
@@m118lr well no, nowa days fossil fuels are the problem we need renewable clean sources
But why is it cascading shouldn't be any reason for Exxon to deny special homosexual special rights ?
They're not mexicans !
it's both.
I genuinely love when a new video on your channel shows up on my feed.. your story telling skills and your knowledge on diving and all things around that topic make the videos
so much more informative.. thanks for all the great content 👍
Thanks for saying so. I really appreciate that
從來沒有煮過沙子來做腳...但我看到人們用奶油鴨毛來搞笑...只是被告知天空很快就會結束。
I worked on the repair of the Sea Empress in Belfast dry dock in 1996 or1997,it ran aground off the Welsh coast, it is amazing the damage Mother Nature can do to 1 inch steel! Was absolute carnage under the waterline most of the bow was gone(it was held in place by steel beams welded onto hull and onto plates on the dock floor!)inside the tanks huge beams crushed and looked like a Cadbury’s flake! The only reason they repaired it was the screw was not damaged.
No, they repaired that vessel because it was CHEAPER TO REPAIR THAN BUILD A NEW ONE! Really calls into question your "Experience" when you can't even figure out the basic Economics behind those kinds of Decisions...
@@ligmasack9038 yes,the screw is very expensive.
The Actual Imagery label is something your other videos have been missing, it helps with the clarity and credibility
Thanks. Yes I think so. I’ve been asked to label footage in a number of videos. Trying to listen and improve as we go.
thanks for the red arrow on the thumbnail i almost missed that tiny breech on the tanker hull
Just gotta be sure 🤣
Infuriating. These companies are untouchable.
This will be exciting. Thank you for the time you put in making these
My pleasure, Thanks watching
Who tf comments before watching
Valdez is the gift that keeps on giving
Don't worry. Kevin Costner blew it all up so it won't be bothering anybody anymore.
This channel has some of the best well made and well narrated content, unfortunately I have already watched every video so we wait for the next one hahaha
Thanks 👍🏻
To reference my comment from a couple vids ago… this is the perfect balance of causes/context, effects and aftermath for this type of video. Great video man, keep up the great work!!
Thanks I appreciate that 🤜🏻
Can we take the moment to note how the captain sounds like he's on the brink of death by exhaustion.
Been out on the town drinking
I remember watching this on tv while we were stationed in Germany. Another fantastic video from my favorite site. Y'all are awesome 😉😉
Where in Germany were you stationed?
@@waterlinestories Erlanghen, North of Nuremberg and South of Frankfort. Lots of fun in the 80's
I love your channel man, honestly thought you were somebody else that i had already subbed to and then i realized after watching your vids for a while that i hadnt subscribed yet! Youve earned my viewership! Keep up the good work man!
I remember when that happened. I was a little kid. It was a huge deal at the time!
I was on the Baton Rouge. We tied up alongside the Valdez after they ran aground. The helmsman really should have been investigated. Trust me
This video is but another reminder how our world is not ruled by governments, but by megacorporations.
Ya about 7 of them. All owned by the same families. All pagans and full of darkness.
The governments are ruled by special interests. Government for the people, by the people, and of the people went bye-bye a long time ago. They are just more brazen down.
@@user-zp6ff2gr4n The council of 13. Trillionairs witch families
Not a joke. John Todd. Documentary
I'm so glad I found your channel - currently binge watching it. Your narration is very engaging, usage of actual photos is a proof that you want to show and not only tell. Also, the editing is pro-level like. Please keep uploading!
Thanks for the encouragement. 👍🏻
I click on your videos so fast man, whenever I see them pop up. You come across as such a polished presenter so I was shocked to see that you only recently started making this sort of content. Happy to be a long for the ride man, keep it up.
Thanks. I’ve had another channel before making how to scuba dive videos. But it’s not done as well as this channel. Thanks for taking this journey with me.
Hi Waterline Stories. Have you considered making a video about the SAS Drakensberg and how it lost one of its anchors in False Bay and the story of how the finally found and recovered it. Or how about when a member of the Drakensberg crew went overboard one night while at sea and the search to find him(I don't think they did, if I remember correctly.). Thank you for all your hard work on these videos.
Hey. I can’t say I’m familiar with the lost anchor. Do you have a link to the story? A quick Google search doesn’t bring up anything. But I’m based in Germany so sometimes it doesn’t find the regional stories.
The anchor happened in the late 1990's, probably 1997 or 1998. Try searching for the "Cape Times" newspaper or the "False Bay Echo" local newspaper, I think they did a story about it. Damn, just tried looking for it and couldn't find it either, not change on the South African navy site. I clearly remember one of their ships lost an anchor in the late 1990's because I was in the navy at the time, but I was in a short base. It was either the SAS Drakensberg or the SAS Tafelberg. They were the 2 biggest ships we had back then and they both had a port and a starboard anchor. Once they recovered the anchor and chain, you could see which one had been sitting on the ocean floor for a few months as it was clearly very discolored compared to the other one. I am based in England now and have sadly lost touch with my former crew mates so no longer have any contacts in the navy either. I can't think of any other way to find the information. I am very sorry I can't help more.
I was a child when this happened but never forgot the harrowing pictures of wild life caked in black tar. I didn't even probably know what oil was but even to 5 year old it was evident that something went VERY wrong.
Yes incredibly sad to think of all the innocent lives that are destroyed through no fault of their own.
But they never told you you caused this, did they? Every time you drive the car to school, a bird gets drowned in tar. That's the thing. We all don't think we caused this.
@@thewhitefalcon8539 Sure, buddy. You feeling ok?
@@thewhitefalcon8539 You cannot blame the consumer for the ignorance of the producers.
People depend on cars. In some places, less so that other. But we NEED biofuels, we simply can't transition to renewables yet.
When I drive my car, I cause emissions. Small emissions in the grand scheme of things.
I did not sink a whole tanker worth of crude oil into open waters. Exxon did that, not me.
@@darkySp Every time you vote for car-dependency policies you vote for tankers of crude oil sunk in open waters.
I was D.O.P. on the BBC/HBO movie version of the incident. Some of the footage in the Exxon Valdez bridge is taken from that movie. Sadly, we used 16mm film, and it really shows its age. The whole movie, starring Christopher Lloyd and John Heard, can be found on RUclips, albeit in 5 or 6 chunks.
Just for context the oil price in 2007 fluctuated between $72 a barrel and $99 a barrel which would mean that a single load on a ship like the Exxon Valdez would be worth between $105 million and $150 million. A $2.5 Billion settlement is a joke. It's on a par with a normal person getting a $50 fine for causing multiple deaths by dangerous driving.
You've worked your way up from deckhand to mate and now your a captain! It's MILLER TIME.
My mates dad had an old Post office van, the thing blew black smoke, leaked oil and the last 4 digits were 3 XON. we called it the Valdez 😂
It’s never a question of if, but always a question of _when_ is the catastrophic disaster is going to happen.
Yep. Just had titan so maybe that holds us for a minute
Especially with how often we give these companies opportunities to cut corners and do risky shit. People complain about regulation but left to their own devices these companies would absolutely get away with doing as little as they can to ensure environmental and human safety.
I remember this well from my childhood, the devastation was unprecedented and went far beyond Alaska. The far reaching effects of that spill will take centuries to recover from and dozens have been added since.
wow that line at the end. they paid off the lawsuit in 2 days, makes you think
love the vids
Yep sometimes the perspectives are all skewed.
When you pay less to your team of lawyers in 20 years than you would to the victims without appealing then it's all worth it.
In the company's perspective. It's all about the money. It's like a glass ceiling of empathy: people who would have the decency to pay up if they mess up never rise to a position to be able to mess up that big in the first place.
@@waterlinestories I agree and I think the miniscule fines and minimal consequences for these companies is disgusting, but revenue is not profit. They could not pay off the fine with the revenue of two days.
That being said they, without a doubt, should have been required to pay the full original amount in a timely manner.
@@carbonsx3Agree... The profit that year was around 35 billion, roughly 18 biliion from oil. So, so yes, they got off easy. Could have easily afforded the original 5 billion. scumbags.
The third mates cousins had me all confused for a second. I was like why can't they say his name?
You are a very good storyteller my friend!
5:56 Cousins sounds like an awesome guy to work with!
He got you
Mate I been here since day 1 every video gets liked straight away before even watching I could sit hours watching please keep doing what you’re doing I sit watching on my tv chilling. Never give you the praise you deserve it’s such a niche that you’ve nailed.
Thanks. I’d say welcome aboard but sounds like you’ve been stowaway since the beginning. I really appreciate you being on this journey with me. 👌🏻
@@waterlinestories anytime mate keep at it. Appreciate the effort put in at the beginning seems like it’s picking up and there’s plenty of content at the minute. Look after yourself 👍🏽
The greed and hubris of that company, to this day, is nothing short of being massively stunning.
In Alaska, Valdez is pronounced val-DEEZ, even though this isn't the way most Spanish speakers do. Even Exxon shipping pronounced it this way.
**must...be...strong...don't...make...joke...about...deez...**
The modern wave of environmentalism kinda started with the Exxon Valdez, the devastating effects on the surrounding areas was broadcast on the nightly news like war coverage.
Actually I remember environmental concerns when the Alaska pipeline was being built. I lived in Anchorage then and it was like a gold rush hit town. Everyone aI knew was headed up to the North Slope to make their fortunes. The town totally changed and new stores went up almost overnight. I personally liked the old "Anchorage that I grew up in, but progress marches forward.
I was there. I worked the spill on a fishing vessel that was put into service as a logistics vessel. I remember going into town in Valdez and seeing many stacks of one inch marine grade plywood being cut down the middle with chainsaws and also many Zodiacs (inflatable skiffs) with brand new outboard motors on them taken out and sunk. This was all done by the VECO Corporation who was in charge of the clean up. I later heard they did it for the write-off and so no one else could use it. They got rich on this one, along with a lot of others.
It looks like some of the measures used to clean up were almost as bad as the oil. The dispersant seems to just be about hiding the oil rather than treating it. The burning would give the modern eco zealot the conniptions. Hopefully things have improved since then.
The amount of wildlife that died shocked me. Idk why i hadnt thought about that massive impact it would have. When you were talking about the single hulled ship I thought it was a stupid idea. Turns out it is
Rockefeller and the greedy ceo,s deserve bad karma for their greed and uncaring nature. All lives matter. LOVE AND LIVITY
Thankyou for such a clear account of this shameful negligent disaster. And why am I not surprised at your last comment ? In the oil industry 2.5 billion is mere lunch money .........
Fantastic work keep it up! I've binged your entire channel!
🤜🏻 thanks will do
Good video, but you totally left out a HUGE factor: US Coast Guard VTS. There were 2 factors involving VTS:
1) The outermost 15 or so miles of the radar range for the brand new VTS radar system would "blank out" from time to time for absolutely no reason. The new VTS radar was acting up that night, and Bligh reef was in that blank spot. Of course, the VTS watch stander would not have been able to observe the E/V's perilous course and subsequently order a course correction...had he been at his station.
2) Even if the radar was working properly that night, it still wouldn't have mattered because the VTS watch stander was outside smoking cigarettes in the time leading up to grounding. The first FOSC / 17th CG District Commander (I can't remember his name now) knew about this and sat on the info, keeping it hidden. That admiral was later replaced by the no-nonsense RADM David Ciangcaglini who turned that response operation around. I don't recall when the VTS info was finally released...getting old stinks. I was DEEPLY involved with that operation for nearly 2 years, both in the field and eventually as the FOSC Field Advisor.
MST1 Rainsford was also, three years.
Good to hear more of the context of what actually happened. Unless one was there in any accident, everything else is specualtion and blame is often wrongly aportioned.
Rear Admiral David Ciancaglini was spelled wrong... No worries. MST1 Rainsford spoke with the VTS (vessel traffic system) watch-
stander on duty when the accident happened. MST1 Rainsford was told that the VTS installation was not reliable for navigation, only for communication between incoming and existing vessels. This would prevent the 3 million gallon bunker "C" spill that occurred as a result of a ship-to-ship collision in San Francisco previously.
MST1 Rainsford was disappointed in CBS when they found a Navy Admiral which measured the charted width of the shipping lanes and declared that the more than 9 mile width of the channel should have been easy to traverse. Dan Rather never informed the viewers that the Columbia Glacier had calved ice that reduced the shipping lanes to 1.5 mile total. The VTS's radar system was not ice reliable. Still, the grounding should not have happened.
The images of the animals at the end are haunting. We destroy so much of nature chasing profits with diminishing returns
I saw the Valdez in dry dock in San Diego in 1986 right next to the USN Hospital ship mercy never thought this would happen. Didn’t enter my mind.
Fun fact- she ended up back in the same dry dock 10 years later. I was working at NASSCO during the hull repairs/conversion.
I absolutely love your videos mate. Even when the subject matter is as bleak as this is
Thanks I appreciate that
You are criminally underrated ❤️
Really liked the labels showing which pictures were real and which were representative!
There also was rough weather, a marker buoy was malfunctioning, and the Coast Guard failed to monitor and communicate ships actual progress as it was deviating. Yes, strategies were in place, but a series of failures led to the disaster. The captain and crew were also exhausted.from 14:43 being on duty during the 24 hour loading of the ship in very cold, rough weather.
All that was missing is " Iceberg right ahead!" and "close the watertight doors".
Smell ice, do ya??
As long as criminals will stay alive and living very well, it will not change.
Lets not forget all the cleanup workers who have gotten cancer and died, and suffered other illnesses directly associated with this disaster.. The truth is still being covered up to this day
Hi Waterline Stories: Could you please make a video on the sinking of KRI Nanggala 402? The Indonesian submarine that sank in 2021. It would be great if you could make the video in honor of the 53 sailors lost in this sad incident.
I’ll put it on the list. Thanks for letting me know.
Keep up with the good work
Love your video, very educating.
Remember stuff like this when the powers that be try and say common people producing to much pollution
From Alaska, born and raised. Most of the people that had their livelihoods ripped away completely that day, died before any legal settlement was reached...this is a tragedy that STILL affects Alaskans and Exxon just goes about their business, making record profit, while Alaskans deal with their BS. Sad.
One of the best RUclips channels out there. And a SAFA!
🤣 thanks
Wow... Amazing.... Proud family Valdez... I discover
You wanted capitalism, you got capitalism. Your votes at work.
i remember this happenin this was HUGE news back in the 90s. I was a kid when this happened.
And now... all these years later..the earth has healed itself...
Such a terrible disaster! Not only the damage caused to the coastal wildlife, but also the health injuries to the cleanup crews caused by the chemicals, and on top of that, making the coastal communities wait 20 years for compensation. This is shameful.
The last statement says it all.
It would help a lot of this video contained more images of the actual situation that is described. Actual time of events not only spoken, but visible in the video would make it more easy to watch.
Anybody remember "Water World" and the future of the Exxon Valdez? LOL
I saw a documentary about this ship. In the end, Kevin Costner blows it up and it sinks.
Great video! Just an FYI, in Alaska, the town named Valdez and ship name is pronounced “val-deez”, unlike the Hispanic pronunciation “val-dez”.
Love your content mate
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Really interesting channel. Thanks.
👍🏻 Thanks
I was 5 years old when the Chernobyl reactor melted down, and 8 when the Exxon Valdez disaster happened. I remember them both well.
My wife and I worked on the cleanup. It was extremely disheartening. The Spill happened at extremely high tide so most of the oil was deposited beyond the reach of a typical tide. The mid and lower tide zones we're relatively unaffected. They had us using boiling hot sea water to wash the oil from the highest tide zone down through the varying tide levels where the oil would be collected on the water surface through the use of booms and suction hoses. The result in many areas was that the whole tidal Zone destroyed. Animals killed by the oil we're sometimes left on the beach only to be eaten by other wildlife which subsequently died too. It seemed to us that Exxon was simply spending as much money as they could on the cleanup to be able to report to the American people on how much they spent so that they would be forgiven by the public. I definitely felt like I was taking Blood Money. The whole thing is and was very depressing!
Always look forward to your videos
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An example of how most businesses put profit before anything else...
I was up there when I was in the Navy to help with the clean up effort
The people who were responsible to drop Corexit into the water should go to prison for life. They literally dropped another different chemical into the water, knowingly that it doesn`t help the environment at all and does even way more damage, just so the oil at the surface is not that visible anymore from the air and reporters... That is absolutely despicable.
Good video, good pacing.
Very informative video.
I noticed that all the computers pictured in the stock photos are made decades after 1989...
I remember this well, it was a sad situation that could have been avoided!!!
It just shows the power of money when single-skinned tanker is put into service, operating through sea ice. Just so a few extra bucks can be made. Despite the huge risk this posed.
I was a 3rd mate until 1984 and haven't been to sea professionally since. At that time there were very good reasons NOT to use double bottom construction for tankers. They were the standard for dry cargo ships. The reason is that gas from the oil could accumulate in the space between the hulls and create what is effectively a bomb waiting to go off. This incident changed that and now I see tankers do have double-bottoms. So how is the explosion risk mitigated ? Is it just a case of using sensors and ventilation or are there more fundamental changes to the ship's architecture that make it impossible for gas/oil to get into the space ?
Wow that list of animals was shocking!!
"We're sorry."
they always build something and swear it won't break or fail and leak! from the titanic to the oil pipeline's going across our most precious places, and train-cars too! humans will never learn until it is too late and i feel horrible for the future generations that are going to end up with our mess :-(
Your content is great 👍🏽
Thanks
It sounds like the whole thing was just one huge clusterf*ck! The transmission, to let authorities know they had struck the reef, and were leaking oil, sounded like the guy was half asleep, but he was actually intoxicated. He would probably be sent to prison if it were now.
If you look at actual drawings of the large tankers, for trim & stability reasons you might find ships (single or double hull) had port & starboard or port & center & starboard tanks. There would be multiple partitions going down the length of the vessel. Also helpful in the event of a leak or other damage to limit how much would be lost. Many of the smaller tankers 200,000 to 300,000 Bbls sizes of the previous generation of single hulls would be 1 to 11 in P/C/S configuration then 12 as P/S as "slop tanks". Lots of tanks when filling/unloading along with gauges & samples.
There might be a video, if you search around a bit talking about the basis for ship designs over the decades (shipyard perspective). It also touched on the double bottom and "split level" tanks (upper vs lower tanks and some mixed - large centre tanks as "odd number" then P/S on the "even number" tanks).
You can see that in this video at 10:03
In San Francisco, there are two adjacent streets: Hazelwood and Valdez. They cross Monterey Blvd in the Monterey Heights area. Eerie coincidence, eh wot ?
My hometown of 48 years and didn't know that until just now. The views and homes on Monterrey are beautiful