All 571 people on board were saved, following one of the worlds most dramatic and successful rescue operations of its kind. In 1976, she was acquired by Epirotiki Lines of Greece and registered under the name of Oceanos.[2]. Although conditions looked very good for diving, a large shore break was preventing our launch, and the skippers felt the risk to the team, and their vessels were too great. All considered, said Canadian-American fellow team member and cave diving world record holder Paul Heinerth, the Oceanos is probably one of the most, if not the most difficult wreck in the world to dive. The difficulties of diving on the Oceanos are extreme, but with commitment and proper planning, the dive is not impossible. Sometimes we were almost horizontal going down. Steve said, We had to hold onto the anchor line with all our strength. ", the captain of the wrecked cruise ship Costa Concordia. THE GREATEST MARITIME RESCUE IN HISTORY OCEANOS - Africa Ports When they bail early, everything falls apart. The bridge section, however, appeared to have collapsed, leaving a field of debris on the sand below. Should oxygen levels drop below those required by the diver, O2 can be computationally or manually injected into the system from an onboard cylinder to replenish the supply. Blowing in the same direction as the current, a strong northeasterly wind would slowly increase the rate of flow beyond that conducive for diving. Just before he boarded a train to Washington, Pryal reported, the man smiled at him and said, Be good, shipmate, until we meet again., There is no possibility I am mistaken. Pryal told a reporter. A magician who had been performing on the ship took over the bridge, monitoring rescue calls, as a fellow entertainer kept passengers calm by playing Beatles songs on his guitar. Must a captain be the last one off a sinking ship? MTS Oceanos was a French-built and Greek-owned cruise ship that sank in 1991 when she suffered uncontrolled flooding. It was now just after 12:30 a.m. Schettino also didnt immediately alert the Italian Search and Rescue Authority about the accident. In the immediate aftermath of the disaster, newspapers cast Smith as a hero, the brave captain who went down with his ship. What happened to the captain and crew of the Oceanos? Then he returned and oversaw the operation from the air. ), READ MORE: Titanic By the Numbers: From Construction to Disaster to Discovery. At this stage, eyewitness accounts reveal that many of the crew, including Captain Avranas, were already packed and ready to depart. I just watched national geografic program about the Oceanos tragedy. He speaks five foreign languages, originally from Kasos, but was born in Egypt. What happened to the captain and crew of the Oceanos? The ship started taking on water, rapidly flooding the engine room. The sewage and water systems had their one way "check valves" removed and not replaced. When his "death-glorious ship" sinks, Ahab mourns that he's been denied the "pride" of having gone down with her. He made the wrong choice. Avranas at the time defended his actions, saying he left the ship to direct rescue operations. "It is my responsibility. She came to rest on her starboard side almost perpendicular to the coastline, with her bow facing seaward. [5] They used the radio phone to broadcast a mayday distress call until Moss received a response.[7]. He would attempt to sit there. While we were busy on one hand throwing the boats they went the other way and left, says Nikolaou. Still others believed he had made it to an overturned lifeboat but lost his grip, possibly when one of the Titanics immense funnels broke loose and crashed into the water nearby. Very well, Pryal, the man supposedly answered, but please dont detain me.