Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, September 29, 1994 TAG: 9409290071
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: TURKU, FINLAND NOTE: ABOVE LENGTH: Medium
It was the worst peacetime accident on the Baltic and one of the worst maritime disasters of all time.
Helicopters and ships searching for survivors and bodies off Finland's southwestern coast checked dozens of black-and-orange rafts bobbing in the surging waters. Many were empty.
Officials said it was too early to say what caused the ferry Estonia to sink shortly after midnight.
A surviving crew member said water started pouring through the front cargo door, and the ship rolled over and sank quickly.
Swedish safety inspectors had criticized the seals on the door before the ferry left Tallinn, Estonia, on Tuesday evening for the 230-mile trip to Stockholm, Sweden. But ``We saw nothing that gave us a hint that something would go wrong,'' one of the inspectors, Ake Sjoblom, told Swedish television.
Raimo Tiilikainen, the Finnish coast guard commodore coordinating the search, said four ships would remain in the area Wednesday night, but he held out no hope more survivors would be found. That leaves 823 people missing and presumed dead.
Tiilikainen said the Estonia carried 776 passengers and 188 crew members. It was less than half full.
The first word of the ferry's trouble came shortly after midnight, when it radioed Estonian authorities: ``We are sinking! ... The engines have stopped!''
Survivors described scenes of panic as the ferry listed and started sinking in pitch darkness amid 35-foot waves. The water was 54 degrees, and winds were blowing around 55 mph.
Ship's engineer Henrik Sillaste, 24, said the bow door was not properly closed and water started pouring in.
``There was something wrong,'' he told reporters in Turku, the Finnish city where rescue efforts were coordinated and many survivors were flown for medical treatment. ``The water reached my knees.''
Experts were reluctant to speculate on how a fairly modern ship could sink so suddenly. The ship's Estonian captain and several officers were among the survivors, and accident investigators were waiting to question them.
The vehicle decks were virtually full, which should have helped improve stability by preventing cars or trucks from breaking loose and sliding around, said Ronald Bergman, president of Nordstrom & Thulin, a partner in the company that owns the ferry. But he was at a loss to explain how the accident could have happened.
New ferry safety regulations that take effect Saturday are designed to improve stability and survivability of roll-on ships.
The Washington Post and Knight-Ridder/Tribune contributed information to this story.
Keywords:
FATALITY
by CNB