At least 3 dead in tanker explosion off Virginia
Search for remaining crew members continues until dark
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The tanker exploded and sank off Virginia's Chincoteague Island.
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At least three crew members die in a tanker explosion off Chingoteague, Virginia. CNN's Elaine Quijano reports (February 29)
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(CNN) -- The U.S. Coast Guard searched in vain Sunday for 18 crew members of a chemical tanker that exploded and sank Saturday evening in the frigid waters 50 miles off the coast of Virginia.
U.S. Coast Guard officials said they were hopeful they will find survivors "but realistically the longer that the search goes on, the less likely we will find anyone alive," said Coast Guard 5th District Commander Rear Adm. Sally Brice-O'Hara.
Three of the 27 crewmen are known dead and six were plucked to safety from a life raft by a Coast Guard HH-60 Jayhawk helicopter that arrived on the scene within an hour after the Coast Guard received a distress call from the ship, Brice-O'Hara said.
Brice-O'Hara said she authorized the search to continue until nightfall Sunday and resume Monday "briefly."
She described the possibility of finding anyone alive after Sunday as "remote."
The 570-foot Singapore-flagged tanker Bow Mariner was carrying about 3.5 million gallons of ethanol, about 200,000 gallons of fuel oil and 53,000 gallons of diesel fuel from New York to Houston when it exploded about 50 miles east of Chincoteague Island, Virginia, Brice-O'Hara said.
The ship called in a mayday to the Coast Guard after 6 p.m. Saturday to report the blast. It sank about an hour and a half later in 44-degree waters. The crew consisted of 24 people from the Philippines and three from Greece.
The Coast Guard has established an incident command post staffed by pollution response experts and representatives from the shipping company.
The ship's owners contracted with a marine spill response company and a spill-response ship was expected to reach the site Sunday evening.
None of the chemicals posed an immediate threat to the U.S. shoreline, the Coast Guard said.
The ethanol likely dissolved in the sea, but the heavy fuel oil is less likely to dissolve, said Cmdr. Steve Hanewich of the Marine Safety Office in Hampton, Virginia.
"Much of it will emulsify and be distributed throughout the water column," showing up as tar balls, he said.
Survivors told investigators that a number of the crew members were asleep and some were working on deck when the explosion occurred, she said.
The boat first listed starboard and then sank bow first, indicating a problem forward in the area of the tanks holding the fuel, Brice-O'Hara said.
Though maritime rules typically dictate that the country whose flag flies on the ship leads any investigation of incidents that occur in international waters, the Coast Guard said it agreed to Singapore's request that it assume the lead investigative role.
The ship's owners have also contracted with a company to determine whether it is feasible to attempt to salvage the vessel. The ocean ranges from 230 to 250 feet at the site.
There is no indication that the incident was related to terrorism, the Coast Guard said.
'I had to physically drag them out'
During the rescue of the six crew members, U.S. Coast Guard Pilot Lt. Eric Bader initially lowered a basket from his helicopter several times to within arm's reach of the life raft, but none of the survivors reached for it.
Bader said he was reluctant to lower a rescuer to water, since authorities did not know the contents of the spill or whether it was flammable.
Medical personnel at Sentara Norfolk General Hospital tend to one of the victims.
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But, as they pondered what to do, "it occurred to me that we were going to watch six people die if we didn't take some kind of action," Bader said.
Down went Aviation Survival Technician Dave Forman. Because the raft was covered with a canopy, he was lowered into the water beside it. Huddled inside were six survivors. Only one man spoke English, and his grasp of the language was poor, Forman said.
For about 45 minutes, Forman worked to get each of the men into the basket, which was lifted and then lowered with each successive load. "I had to basically physically drag them out."
Inside the helicopter, Aviation Electronic Technician Sam Pulliam was receiving Forman's cargo. The men spoke little, Pulliam said. "They were all very, very, very cold. They just wanted some blankets."
Pulliam said he had a hard time seeing the men. "You couldn't even see the whites of their eyes. Most of them had oil in their eyes. They were totally covered."
The oil made the helicopter cabin floor slippery, and pulling the basket inside and out became difficult, especially as the cabin became crowded with survivors.
Most challenging was preparing to hoist two men who appeared to have suffered spinal injuries. Forman -- who said he was getting dizzy by then -- had to place them onto a backboard before they were hauled aloft.
"I haven't dealt with anything of this magnitude before," he said of the ordeal.
"I'm not a hero," he said. "I'm just part of the crew. That's my job."
The survivors were taken to Sentara Norfolk General Hospital in Norfolk. A hospital spokeswoman said neither of the men had spinal injuries.
All six were treated for petroleum contamination and hypothermia. One man's core temperature was 80 degrees at the time he arrived, she said.
Three were released Sunday, and the others were in good condition Sunday night and awaiting release, she said.
Copyright 2004 CNN. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Associated Press contributed to this report.
