UNALASKA, AK (2007-03-09) What could've been a serious shipwreck was narrowly avoided this morning after a tramper vessel lost power near Hog Island in Unalaska Bay.
The Salica Frigo, a 443-foot Spanish-flagged ship, came within three tenths of a mile of hitting Hog Island after a complete engine failure at about 3 a.m. this morning. The ship was able to restore power at 6:43 a.m., about 15 minutes before it would have run aground at the speed it was drifting.
December 8th, 2006 was the two year anniversary of the Selendang Ayu grounding off of Unalaska. Though some positive first steps have been made collaboratively in working towards safer shipping precautions in the Aleutians, they are extremely minor in light of the robust natural resources, pristine habitat and human lives put at risk daily in this region by the lack of precautionary measures in place. Despite two years passing, it is still a constant gamble of when the next vessel transiting these waters is at risk of being another Selendang Ayu on a potentially larger and more devastating scale. See recent news from Unalaska on close calls of the Salica Frigo and Sea Honesty below.
Since its inception in January, 2005, the Shipping Safety Partnership (SSP) has become one of the broadest, most diverse, and unique citizen coalitions in Alaska history. The partnership involves Alaska Natives, commercial fishermen, conservationists, scientists, governmentagencies and businesses. Seldom, if ever, have this many diverse interests collaborated on any issue in Alaska, making the SSP a truly historic endeavor. The overall goal of the SSP is to reduce the risk of shipping disasters in the North Pacific, and the collaboration of partners supporting this goal continues to expand.
