That evening the Greek cement carrier Flag Theofano was one
of those ships, bound for Southampton after a short voyage from Le Havre Piraeus
Unable to provide the Flag Theofano with a berth that evening,
she was called on the radio and told to go to anchor for the night at an area
of the Solent known as St Helens Roads.
Agreeing to this change of plan they acknowledged it and headed to the
anchorage. 44-year-old Captain John Pittas could now relax for the evening and
worry about getting alongside tomorrow.
Dawn the next morning brought no better weather but the berthing
arrangements had been put in place and the Flag Theofano was given the green
light to weigh anchor and proceed into Southampton .
But when she was called on the radio there was no reply.
When vessels in the area were called and a search carried
out, the ship had simply vanished. Had she already gone somewhere else? The
search intensified and that morning the full horror was realised when two
lifeboats, a life raft and two bodies were found nearby. It was now obvious – the
Flag Theofano had gone down in the night and not a single person had known
about it. There had been no radio calls and no eyewitnesses.
The wreck of the ship was located when an oily patch on the
water along with bubbles was located along with something attached just below
the surface to a rope. 20 meters below the surface, the ship with her cargo of
4000 tons of cement was upside down on the seabed and the first chance of a
break in the weather allowed divers to inspect the wreck.
By now her cargo had come into contact with the water and
hardened, leaving her now as a huge concrete block surrounded by the hull of
the ship. There was never any sign of the missing 17 crew members and her loss
was later thought to be capsizing due to bad weather possibly shifting the
cargo.
The loss of this vessel and her crew of 19 is a forgotten
disaster of modern day that is barely remembered. There are no memorials to the
victims and one of the two bodies found is today buried in Portsmouth’s
Kingston Cemetery with no gravestone to mark his passing (left). Ibrahim Hussain was
just 19 years old when he became a victim of this shipwreck that is today
barely talked about and with few who remember even the name.
Had that ship been into Falmouth docks for repairs to her rudder prior sailing for Le Harve.
ReplyDeleteI was in the area with a small tanker the night Flag Theofano disappeared. We anchored at Saint Helens Road south of the pilot boarding area. Can someone confirm that she sank in approximately 50° 43.10’ N 00 ° 59.45’ W.
DeleteSo, considering the state of the cargo, is the wreck sill there?
ReplyDeleteYes the wreck is still upside down on the seabed and now just a block of concrete inside her so doubt she will ever be moved now.
DeleteThe wreck is a popular fishing Mark and very visible on sonar
DeleteHaving experienced the worst storm since 1987, my mind was taken back to the Flag Theofano disaster. I was working for a Southampton based company, that had many projects on it over several weeks, when it berthed at Southampton on its return journeys. I got to know most of the crew,and we became friends over the time. I was waiting on the quayside for the ship to Dock, when I learned of the disaster later. Having been a mariner for many years in my career, it is something that has lived with me since.
ReplyDeleteI was the ships agent and also knew all the crew well and the previous capt.Have you read the book by Martin Woodward released in September 2022? very good read and very informative.
DeleteI managed the vessel's charter party to deliver cement to Southampton and sailed on the Flag Theofano on its previous voyage from Southampton to Le Harve before the tragedy. The crew treated me like a king, and I was even given the captain's cabin to sleep in (that captain was not on the fateful voyage). I ate with the crew in the galley and listened to their stories, with a larger than life Greek sailor called 'Cookie' holding hilarious court that night as we sailed across the channel to France. A few weeks later they were all gone. I didn't know much about PTSD or survivor guilt back in the day, but I know that the tragic loss of those men has stayed with me ever since.
ReplyDelete