THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, December 3, 1995 TAG: 9512030113
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B7 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: ASSOCIATED PRESS
DATELINE: HALIFAX, NOVA SCOTIA LENGTH: Short : 33 lines
As they were preparing to abandon ship in raging seas and gale-force winds, all 30 people on board a sinking, Norfolk-bound cargo carrier were rescued Saturday by a Canadian navy helicopter.
The lone woman aboard the stricken cargo carrier Mount Olympus kissed her rescuer as he placed her on the deck of another cargo vessel.
``They were about ready to abandon ship,'' said Capt. Dan Burden, who battled darkness, high winds and a low fuel supply to make four harrowing trips to the 715-foot ship.
``The weather was too rough for them to go into the lifeboats. The ship was rolling a fair amount. I could see into one hold where the lid of the container had collapsed. I could see the waves and water rushing through the cracks. They were unable to steer it. It could have gone down at any time.''
Flares from a circling aircraft helped light the sky as the helicopter hovered over the ship and lowered Master Cpl. Rob Fisher to the heaving deck below.
The Mount Olympus, registered in Malta, began taking on water during a storm in the Atlantic about 700 miles northeast of Bermuda. The empty ship was to pick up cargo in Norfolk. by CNB