A natural-color, 60-centimeter QuickBird
satellite image features the freighter Selendang Ayu that ran
aground and broke apart off the shore of Unalaska Island on Dec. 8,
2004. The image was collected Dec. 13.
Unalaska Island is part of the Aleutian Islands, about 800 miles
southwest of Anchorage, Alaska. Officials said conditions were
turbulent at the time of the crash.
The 738-foot-long cargo ship—carrying soybeans from Tacoma, Wash.,
to China—lost power to its main engine Dec. 7 and broke in two the
next day near fisheries and a sea lion habitat. The bow was in about
50 to 60 feet of water about 200 yards offshore, with the stern on
the beach, authorities said.
click image to enlarge
The ship had 440,000 gallons of fuel oil on board and leaked oil
near a wildlife refuge—home to sea lions, harbor seals, sea
otters, tanner crabs, halibut and kelp beds. The double-hull
Selendang Ayu belongs to Singapore-based IMC Group, which
contracted a private spill-response company.
A Coast Guard helicopter attempting to rescue six missing crew
members crashed in rough weather Dec. 8, but no Coast Guard
personnel were seriously injured. Searches for the missing crew
members took place Dec. 9 and 10, despite estimates that a person
could survive only about three hours in the 43-degree water. The
Coast Guard suspended the search Dec. 10.
