SS V. A. FOGG; SINKING IN THE GULF OF MEXICO ON 1 FEBRUARY 1972 WITH LOSS OF LIFE. MARINE CASUALTY REPORT

At 1240 on February 1, 1972, the tankship V.A. FOGG departed Freeport, Texas, en route to the Gulf of Mexico to clean cargo tanks that carried benzene residue. The vessel was due to arrive in Galveston, Texas, at 0200 on February 2. At approximately 1545, February 1, the V.A. FOGG suffered multiple explosions and sank. All 39 persons aboard died as a result of this casualty. This report contains the action taken by the National Transportation Safety Board in determining the probable cause of the casualty and in making recommendations to prevent its recurrence. The report also contains the Marine Board of Investigation report and the action taken by the Commandant, U. S. Coast Guard. The National Transportation Safety Board determines that the probable cause of the initial and subsequent explosions was the ignition of benzene vapors which were present both within the open cargo tanks and on the main deck of the tankship. The investigative record in this case does not contain sufficient information to determine the ignition source of the initial explosion. The probable source of ignition of the subsequent explosions was the heat produced from the preceding explosions. (Author)

• Supplemental Notes:
  • Includes Marine Safety Recommendations M-74-25 thru M-74-42.
• Corporate Authors:

  National Transportation Safety Board

  800 Independence Avenue, SW
  Washington, DC  United States  20594

  United States Coast Guard

  2100 Second Street, SW
  Washington, DC  United States  20593
• Publication Date: 1974-9-13

Media Info

• Pagination: 99 p.

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Cleaning; Crash investigation; Explosions; Fatalities; Storage tanks; Tankers; Water transportation crashes
• Old TRIS Terms: Explosive vapor ignition; Ship casualties; Ss v.a. fogg; Tank cleaning; Tanker casualties; Tanker explosions
• Subject Areas: Maintenance and Preservation; Marine Transportation; Safety and Human Factors;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00080443
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: National Technical Information Service
• Report/Paper Numbers: USCG-NTSB-MAR-74-8
• Files: NTIS, TRIS
• Created Date: Feb 11 1978 12:00AM