Thursday, August 7, 2008

Life At Sea : Archive

Dear readers,

Here comes the time to sail back at sea and spend some quality time out there and do what we like most ; working on-board. And as usual most of the VLCC’s don’t have the internet, so wont be able keep posting for next 5 months and will miss all you readers.

Thank you for your regular appreciation and comments which acts as a fuel for me to propel through the bloging ocean. I also thank my friendly maritime bloggers

Gcaptain:
Sea-fever:
Marinebuzz
Robinstorm
Imc Brokers
Diesel-duck
Manu script
pinoymaritime


and all favorites in my blogosphere for turbo-charging me to excel.

I am desperate to come back soon and keep blogging. Till then you all can enjoy my past blog archive.

Keep smiling.

Nandkishore Gitte




http://mylifeatsea.blogspot.com/2008/08/weve-got-our-pesonal-flotation-devices.html
I have a personal theory that the need and use of personal flotation devices, or life jackets, was borne of two general evolutionary events in history. These two events largely are unrelated to each other, but until they occurred, human civilization apparently didn't feel that such devices were important or necessary. …
2 days ago



It is widely known that LNG shipping and LNG ship financing have seen an unprecedented boom in the last few years. More than 80 LNG ships have been ordered in the last two years alone, against a current fleet size of approximately 176. The competition among ship owners for this rapidly growing market is intense. The LNG ship financing market has faced similar trends – it has grown significantly and is extremely competitive. Given current market conditions, both LNG shipping companies and financiers must wonder whether this momentum can hold and, if so, for how long. The question is whether the market will follow a cyclical trend so common to the shipping sector at large or evolve in a different way.



Horrifying survival story of 2 Indians onboard 'Fort Longueuil'





There were only two survivors from the 'Fort Longueuil'. The two men, both Indians, survived 4½ months on a life raft and then a further 18 months in a Japanese Prisoner of War Camp. They survived against incredible odds.Below are transcripts of the statements made by Thakar Miah and Mohamed Aftab in January 1946. …
4 days ago
Dawn of Women Marine Engineers in India.




They talk about engine 'decarbs' (overhauls) as comfortably as the latest Bollywood flick. They are equally at ease in both the air-conditioned comfort of their lounges and the furnace-like heat of the engine room. They don't mind the grime and dust or the long, gruelling work hours. …
6 days ago




Introduction Seafaring work patterns involve periods of leave and seatime and the associated transition periods as the seafarer moves from one situation to the other. This post explores seafarers’ and their partner’s experiences of the different aspects of the work cycle. …
14 days ago




THE mandatory use of electronic chart display and information systems on board ships came a step closer to being compulsory with this week’s International Maritime Organization NAV sub-committee agreeing a set of deadlines for installation. These include a comprehensive phase in schedule that some bodies were seeking. …
31 days ago





SHIPOWNERS AND MANAGERS HAVE RELIED ON THE PHILIPPINES AS THEWORLD’S LARGEST SUPPLIER OF SEAFARERS TO THE MERCHANT MARINE FLEET FOR MANY YEARS BY BANKING ON THEIR COMPETENCE AND SOME DEGREE OF LOYALTY, But the current shortage of officers being experienced by the shipping industry is forcing the …
32 days ago



http://mylifeatsea.blogspot.com/2008/07/hundred-years-of-sos-at-glance.html
S.O.S ‘SOS’, the distress signal that saved thousands of lives, has turned 100 on (July 1). ‘SOS’, which is the commonly used description for the international morse code distress signal containing three dots, three dashes and three more dots, was first adopted by the German government in radio regulations on April 1, 1905. …
33 days ago





MAN Diesel has enhanced its electronic, low-speed, ME-B engine programme with the launch of the MAN B&W S46- and S60ME-B type engines. These add to the existing MAN B&W S35ME-B and S40ME-B engines that were introduced in mid-2006, and the S50ME-B that was introduced in early 2007. …
33 days ago


http://mylifeatsea.blogspot.com/2008/06/supreme-court-slashes-2-billion-exxon.html
The Supreme Court on Wednesday slashed the $2.5 billion punitive damages award in the Exxon Valdez disaster to $500 million, a decision that could have broader implications for limiting how much courts can order businesses to pay. The decision was hailed by the business community and decried by environmentalists and Alaskans. …
40 days ago



http://mylifeatsea.blogspot.com/2008/06/sethusamudram-shipping-canal-project.html
What is Sethusamudram Shipping Canal Project ? Sethusamudram Ship Channel Project proposes linking the Palk Bay and the Gulf of Mannar between India and Sri Lanka by creating a shipping channel through the shallow sea sometimes called Setu Samudram, and through the island chain of Rama's Bridge, also known as Adam's Bridge. …
40 days ago




http://mylifeatsea.blogspot.com/2008/06/why-foreign-flags-attract-indian.html
An Indian seafarer working aboard a foreign-flagged vessel earns more than double what he would on an Indian-flagged carrier. This and the tax benefits have led to a large-scale drift of skilled manpower to ships flying foreign flags. …
49 days ago


http://mylifeatsea.blogspot.com/2008/06/maritime-archaeology.html
Underwater cultural heritage is enormously rich and has immense potential. In recent years, it has attracted increasing attention from the scientific community and the general public. Over the centuries entire cities, have been swallowed by the waves, and thousands of ships have perished at sea. …
50 days ago



http://mylifeatsea.blogspot.com/2008/06/worlds-earliest-shipyard-lothalgujarat.html
The world's earliest dockyards were built in the Harappan port city of Lothal circa 2400 BC in Gujarat, India. Lothal's dockyards connected to an ancient course of the Sabarmati river on the trade route between Harappan cities in Sindh and the peninsula of Saurashtra when the surrounding Kutch desert was a part of the Arabian Sea. …
52 days ago


http://mylifeatsea.blogspot.com/2008/06/when-women-turn-pirate.html
It might readily be supposed that piracy is strictly a male domain. But, in fact, the ledgers of history are filled with a surprising number of piratical accounts featuring swashbuckling piratesses, or female pirates. How or why did women enter this dangerous, disreputable, high-stakes, rum-swilling male domain and become pirates? Female pirates have been around 600 B.C. …
52 days ago


http://mylifeatsea.blogspot.com/2008/06/imo-award-for-exceptional-bravery-at.html
IMO Award for Exceptional Bravery at SeaThe inaugural IMO Award for Exceptional Bravery at Sea has been presented to two seafarers who risked their lives to save others in a dramatic rescue operation in gale-force winds.Second Officer Mustafa Topiwala of the 83,155 dwt Bahamas-registered oil/bulk …
52 days ago


http://mylifeatsea.blogspot.com/2008/04/seafarers-health-and-sexuality.html
Introduction This blog will consider seafaring and sexual behaviour, both in the context of long-term and casual sexual relationships. It will go on to discuss the specific health issues raised by seafarers and their partners, including mental health issues and the effects of traumatic incidents on well-being. …
127 days ago




She watches closely, as he ascends the plank, to the ship that will now become his home, She stands fast and steady against the crowds, that his voice fade not from her ears, and his love not vanish in her memory. As he reached the ship and stood upon her deck, he raises his voice and says: Though the sea bid me leave you, It is not without regret that I do so, yet I must go. …
134 days ago




Introduction According to the current provisions in STCW, it is acceptable for a seafarer to work for 98 hours a week. This can be compared with 72 hours per week in ILO 180 and 48 hours per week in the European Working Time Directive. …
134 days ago


http://mylifeatsea.blogspot.com/2008/03/yes-i-am-seafarers-wife.html
Everyday I struggle in living a life without him. From the moment I wake up, I think of him. I miss him. I miss waking up with him at my side and with his arms around me and mine around him. I miss our tender kisses as we exchange good mornings and i love yous. I miss our sweet mushy moments. …
136 days ago



The key to a good practical joke is execution - well of course, you say.You need a well meaning eager beaver victim.You need professional cohorts.And you need to be convincing in your setup.Generally, most practical jokes involve getting some newbie/greenie to do something, which, on shore, would seem absurd, but since it's a ship -it's a custom !




Tales of murderous rogue waves were once dismissed as seafaring myths, but it turns out the sailors were right all along. Graham Lawton fears for those in peril on the sea "We were in a storm and the tanker was running before the sea. This amazing wave came from the aft and broke over the deck. I didn't see it until it was alongside the vessel but it was special, much bigger than the others. It took us by surprise. I never saw one again." Philippe Lijour, first mate of the oil tanker Esso Languedoc, describing the huge wave that slammed into the ship off the east coast of South Africa in 1980.LIJOUR and his shipmates are lucky to be alive. They were struck by a rogue wave-a monstrous wall of water that rose out of nowhere and slammed onto the deck like the fist of god. Ships often don't survive an onslaught like that.




Crossing the Line ceremonies matched the initiation ceremonies of many medieval guilds, and by the 16th century, a pattern of customs had emerged in European shipping to provide a ‘baptism’ for all sailors aboard who have not previously crossed the equator. Neptune, usually the oldest sailor who had crossed the equator the most…and his retinue would come over the bows of the ship and take over the deck. The retinue might consist of, among others, ‘Davy Jones’ or the Devil, two ‘Bears’, men dressed in skins who would pull Neptune’s chariot, a ‘Barber’ and a ‘Doctor’. Often Neptune was accompanied by Amphritrite, the wife of Triton or Neptune, usually a young sailor dressed up with a wig and outlandish female clothing.




There is always some list to check off when doing our day to day business. Arrival list, departure list, garbage list, fire list and now the Port List. But of course the engineering cadet will be shooed away as the Mate is too busy to draw it up right this minute, keep em coming back again and again. Of course a few up and downs to the bridge, will tune them in to the fact that the ship may be listing slightly to port or starboard - mmmm, port list.




Imagine yourself as a killer whale. You are swimming around when you decide to stick your head out of the water to take a breath. As you are taking a breath, you see a large stream of thick black oil heading your way. You go back under water only to find other animals dying one by one because the oil is damaging their bodies. This is the way some animals must die in the ocean. They die because of an oil spill occurring in their habitat.




HMS Bounty Known for a maritime mutiny that took place over 200 years ago, Bounty remains famous and infamous. Thousands cross her ample decks during port visits wondering what life was like then and now. You know her from her modern movies as well. In 1960, it was Marlon Brando as Fletcher Christian in Mutiny on the Bounty. Today, it is Johnny Depp as Captain Jack Sparrow in Pirates of the Caribbean – Dead Man's Chest




A mermaid (from the Middle English mere in the obsolete sense 'sea' (as in maritime, the Latin mare, "sea") + maid(en)) is a legendary aquatic creature with the head and torso of human female and the tail of a fish. The male version of a mermaid is called a merman; the gender-neutral plural is merfolk or merpeople. Various cultures throughout the world have similar figures.




Ship breaking or ship demolition involves breaking up of ships for scrap.Until the late twentieth century, ship breaking took place in port cities in the "First World," including the United States. Today, however, most ship breaking yards are in developing nations, principally Bangladesh, China, and India, due to lower labor costs and less stringent environmental regulations dealing with the disposal of lead paint and other toxic substances. However, there are a few "breakers" in the United States that still operate.




One of the most controversial and complex theories regarding the sinking of the Titanic was put forward by Robert Gardiner in his book 'TITANIC: The Ship That Never Sank?' (published 1999).In it, Gardiner draws on several events and coincidences that occurred in the months, days and hours leading up to the sinking of the Titanic to form his theory. Put simply, his theory is that the ship that hit the iceberg on 14 April 1912 was in fact the Titanic's sister-ship the Olympic, disguised as the Titanic. All this was part of an insurance scam of huge proportions by the White Star Line.




Seasickness happens when the body, inner ear, and eyes all send different signals to the brain, resulting in confusion and queasiness. It is a problem generally attributed to disturbance in the balance system of the inner ear (vestibular) system. Your sensory perception gets out of synch as these nerve fibers attempt to compensate for the unfamiliar motion of the ship moving through water.The movement of a boat on a fluid sea creates stress in the portions of the brain responsible for balance. Perhaps that stress causes the brain to start malfunctioning as the land based environment it understands is suddenly not behaving as it should.




No cruise ship that has ever been built can compare to the enormity of Freedom Ship. Imagine a mile-long stretch of 25-story-tall buildings in New York City; now imagine that floating on the water. If you can picture that, then you get the general idea of Freedom Ship's size. At 4,320 feet (1,317 meters) long, 725 feet (221 m) wide and 340 feet (103 m) tall, the ship is taller than the length of a football field and wider than two football fields put together. And not only can a ship that size float on water, but it may be navigating the world's oceans as early as 2005.Freedom Ship will dwarf any ocean-going vessel operating today -- it will be more than four times longer than any current cruise ship.




Many seafarers are asked how they ended up at sea! Just like somebody may ask a teacher or a bricklayer why he or she became one, the answers tend to be varied and often without path to the end result. One common reason for entering a particular career is because "my father did it and so did my grandfather". Some extremely obvious reasons for going to sea might have been to get away from home or to see the world; equally so many rusty seafarers today embarked upon their careers for lack of anything else to do, because some cranky careers advisor suggested they do so or because they had been recently dumped by the school hottie!




A ship is called a ‘she’ because there is always a great deal of bustle around her;There is usually a gang of men about,She has a waist and stays;






The Bermuda Triangle, also known as the Devil's Triangle, is an area in the Atlantic Ocean where the disappearance of many people and their aircraft and surface vessels has been attributed by some to the paranormal, a suspension of the laws of physics, or activity by extraterrestrial beings. Some of the disappearances involve a level of mystery which is often popularly explained by a variety of theories beyond human error or acts of nature. An abundance of documentation for most incidents suggests that the Bermuda Triangle is a sailors' legend, later embellished by professional writers.




Piracy is a robbery committed at sea, or sometimes on the shore, by an agent without a commission from a sovereign nation. Seaborne piracy against transport vessels remains a significant issue (with estimated worldwide losses of US$13 to $16 billion per year[1]), particularly in the waters between the Pacific and Indian Oceans, off the Somali coast, and in the Strait of Malacca and Singapore, which are used by over 50,000 commercial ships a year. A recent[1] surge in piracy off the Somali coast spurred a multi-national effort led by the United States to patrol the waters near the Horn of Africa to combat piracy. While boats off the coasts of South America and the Mediterranean Sea are still assailed by pirates, the Royal Navy and the U.S. Coast Guard have nearly eradicated piracy in U.S. waters and the Caribbean Sea.




Shipping is perhaps the most international of the world's industries, serving more than 90 per cent of global trade by carrying huge quantities of cargo cost effectively, cleanly and safely.The ownership and management chain surrounding any ship can embrace many countries and ships spend their economic life moving between different jurisdictions, often far from the country of registry. There is, therefore, a need for international standards to regulate shipping - which can be adopted and accepted by all.




During my vacation days ashore, many friends have asked me what life is like aboard ship. It is a good question, especially for a prospective passenger. It isn't an easy one to answer, either. Much of your experience aboard ship depends upon your temperament, and your situation in life. Are you a person who doesn't mind being alone, or do you need company? If you have some free time, would you like to read a book or to have a party? Are you single, or married with children? No matter what your answers to these questions are, you may or may not enjoy going to sea, but they do have an effect on the type of ship and type of voyage.




Marine Engineers are the members of a ship's crew that operate and maintain the propulsion and other systems onboard the vessel. Marine Engineering staff also deal with the "Hotel" facilities onboard, notably the sewage, lighting, air conditioning and water systems. They deal with bulk fuel transfers, and require training in firefighting and first aid, as well as in dealing with the ship's boats and other nautical tasks- especially with cargo loading/discharging gear and safety systems, though the specific cargo discharge function remains the responsibility of deck officers and deck workers.Sometimes, they are involved in the design and construction of these complicated systems. New design is mostly included within the naval architecture or ship design. The field is closely related to mechanical engineering, although the modern engineer requires knowledge (and hands on experience) with electrical, electronic, pneumatic, hydraulic, chemistry, control engineering, naval architecture, process engineering, gas turbines and even nuclear technology on certain military vessels.The term marine engineer can also refer to a designer who specializes in the design and building of marine machinery, and occasionally, specialists in naval architecture and shipbuilding.




A Blog site dedicated to the writings of the sea, ships and all those that sail on them? It sounds strange as who knows what the Merchant Navy is or what those at sea actually do all day, those who work in the Industry that is. Isn?t the Merchant Navy something to do with fishing or fighting? What is interesting about that? ?Get a real job?, some would say and others would ask ?and so why haven?t you got a sun tan?. So why would anybody be interested in a web site filled with things that nobody is interested in ? beats me.




"My watch was over at 0400. I turned the Engine room over to my relief, Mr. shen, and made my way out of the engine room , step up the ladder into the passageway leading to the wardroom. I was ready for a hot cup of cocoa and a good night's sleep. I downed the hot chocolate and trudged back down the passageway to my cabin. By this time I was in a state of exhaustion and ready for a long session of sack time. I undressed, and carefully folded my clothes and hopped into the sack with just my shorts and skivvies on to keep me warm. It was quite cold the first few nights at sea and necessitated the wearing of something at bedtime. As we made westerly progress the climate became more salubrious and I was able to sleep quite in Bermudas. As I lay in bed I thought about the hectic day and night we had just experienced, about all the things that had to come together in order for our departure to come about smoothly.




Set the burners open wide

Do not touch the valves at the side

Keep the pressure on the pump

And up the bally steam will jump


If the smoke is black and thick

Open up the fans a bit

If the smoke is thick and white

To slow the fans will be quite right




Webster's New World Dictionary definesSeafarer (-far'er) n. traveler by sea; esp., a sailorSeafaring (-fer'in) adj.. of or engaged in life at sea -n. 1 the business or profession of a sailor 2 travel by seaTraveling by sea is done on a variety of ships. The word ship in the English language comes from the Old English word scip. A ship is always referred to in the feminine tone. i.e. "she's a beauty". We can attribute this to the British Navy where all ships in UK used to be called 'Her Majesty Ship' (The Queen). So, when we say a ship, we mean her Majesty; thus, 'she'.




Over a period of hundreds of years, seafarers from the age of the early explorers to the time of the Battle of Trafalgar shared many common experiences. Men working at sea had much to endure. Cut off from normal life on shore for months, even years, they had to accept cramped conditions, disease and poor food and pay. Above all, they faced the daily dangers of sea and weather.




To see the worldSome people choose to work at sea because it gives them a chance to travel or because they like the way they can get responsible jobs relatively early in their careers. But for others, it may be the only way they can earn a wage to support themselves and their families.




It is a common observation that seamen though getting paid much higher than land lubbers do not succeed in saving for their retirement effectively. Seamen, most of them, do not think of their retirement while they are working onboard vessels until very late in the career. I have seen large number of seamen who did not save for the future and there career at sea came to a halt abruptly without sufficient notice, causing them and there families difficulties in managing day to day living.




Working ashore or at sea – difference is not much so far as the working conditions and hours at duty are concerned, especially if one is employed in transportation sector of which shipping is a part.When I look around at people working for different sectors related to merchant shipping ashore, they work long hours without having any regard for the so-called ‘normal’ working hours.




Historically, the term has been used to refer to reported sightings of apparitions over water that have appeared in the form of maritime sailing ships, often after having previously been known to have sunk, or to derelict vessels found floating with no crew. In fiction, ghost ships have often been vessels crewed by some manner of spectral or non-living beings.




Captain James Cook FRS RN (27 October 1728 (O.S.) – 14 February 1779) was an English explorer, navigator and cartographer. Ultimately rising to the rank of Captain in the Royal Navy, Cook was the first to map Newfoundland prior to making three voyages to the Pacific Ocean during which he achieved the first European contact with the eastern coastline of Australia, the European discovery of the Hawaiian Islands, and the first recorded circumnavigation of New Zealand.


Nandkishore Gitte
Posted by Nandkishore Gitte at 8:44 AM 7 Comments Links to this post
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Saturday, August 2, 2008

We've Got Our Personal flotation devices .....Now What?


I have a personal theory that the need and use of personal flotation devices, or life jackets, was borne of two general evolutionary events in history. These two events largely are unrelated to each other, but until they occurred, human civilization apparently didn't feel that such devices were important or necessary.
The first of the two events was the transition in the construction of seagoing vessels from wood to steel.


In days of yore and wooden ships, if a sailor went into the sea, it most likely was the result of shipwreck. Such a catastrophic occurrence could have been the result of ferocious storms, or from cannonballs launched from a few yards broadside by a pirate or ship of an enemy nation. It even has been written that sea monsters have shattered the hulls of seagoing vessels, and in fact we know that whales and other large sea creatures have created such havoc with ships over the ages. But whatever the cause of the wooden ship breaking up, she always left something of herself to which her sailors could cling. To those who may have given any thought in those days to strapping wooden slats around the bodies of their captains and crews, the idea must surely have been deemed unnecessary because of the life-saving flotsam that would accompany them into the sea. In a manner of speaking, one would have surmised, the sea will be filled with flotation devices in the event of a shipwreck, so why go to the trouble of carrying more flotation into the sea with you.



History records that it wasn't until shipbuilders began turning their attention to more durable hulls made of steel that strangely awkward and odd-looking wooden, strap-on devices began appearing in shipboard lockers. When these ships went down, little would remain bobbing on the surface to support a sailor in distress. It was time now for the sailor to start carrying something that would float into the water with him.
The other historic transition that brought forth an interest in personal flotation devices was the public's interest in recreational boating.
Other than some of the South Pacific islands, where children would paddle out into the surf and dive for decorative shells and turtles -- not for profit, but for fun -- there was very little interest in boating for recreation thoughout most of history. Vessels were seen as useful and necessary for exploration and commercial transportation of goods, but not much of the day was spent longing for an open-bow runabout in which the family could enjoy an outing on a placid sandbar or water-skiing. Driving past a large marina today, it taxes our imagination to recall that recreational boating is a relatively modern phenomena. But it is, and with it came a realization that most recreational boaters, unlike the Tahitian children that grew up alongside the sea and lived half their lives in it, were out of their element on the water. They demanded safety, especially for their children, and new industries were born sewing webbing around strips of kapok.

So, according to my own conclusions, out of large steel ships and a desire for family fun on the water came what we know today as personal flotation devices, or PFDs. Those were the catalysts that brought us first to wooden lathe held around a seaman's torso by knotted fiber, and now to self-actuating Coast Guard approved type V "suspenders." Since those two events awakened our need for PFDs, we've developed new technology, new materials and utilized our refined sense of ingenuity to produce devices that have the potential of saving many lives in our community of recreational boaters.



But there's still one more important chapter to be written in the evolution of PFDs. What will historians write about us when we actually decide to wear these devices, now that we have them? Will they conclude it will be because of a manufacturing breakthrough where PFDs will be no more obtrusive than thin strings hanging around the wearer's neck? (After all, we wouldn't want a PFD to get in the way of a good tan, would we?) Or, will it be because of statistical drowning rates and subsequent government regulation? Will it be because of some catastrophe? We all hope not. Or is it possible that the boating public finally realizes that 600 or so tragedies each year can be averted by simply wearing one of these devices when they venture out onto the water?
Only time will tell.

Nandkishore gitte
Posted by Nandkishore Gitte at 10:06 AM 0 Comments Links to this post
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Horrifying survival story of 2 Indians onboard 'Fort Longueuil'


There were only two survivors from the 'Fort Longueuil'. The two men, both Indians, survived 4½ months on a life raft and then a further 18 months in a Japanese Prisoner of War Camp. They survived against incredible odds.
Below are transcripts of the statements made by Thakar Miah and Mohamed Aftab in January 1946.
Statement made by Thakar Miah, Survivor Ex 'Fort Longueuil'

I am Thakar Miah and joined the 'FORT LONGUEUIL' at Barry on the 10th July 1943 as Fireman. The ship left Barry about seven or eight days after and called at Alexandria and Aden. About 9 days after leaving Aden the vessel was torpedoed and this occurred on Monday, 20th September 1943, at about 3p.m. I was due to go on watch at 4 p.m. on that day and was called by Mohamed Aftab just before 3 p.m. I woke Mofiz Ali, Fireman and Fazlur Rahman went to make tea. He had just left when the ship was torpedoed. I put on my lifejacket and went on deck and saw funnel sinking. I put one leg on the ship's railing and jumped into the sea. I sank and when I got to the surface, I saw one raft with Gunner, Mess Room Boy, Galley Boy, Donkeyman and one Fireman.
They called to me and I managed to get to the raft. I then saw that the Donkeyman was Johur Ali and the Fireman Forman Ulla, but I do not know the names of the others on the raft. Mohamed Aftab got to the raft after me. I saw two other rafts. On one raft I saw Chief Mate, 2nd Mate, Carpenter, Apprentice and one Fireman, who I knew as Assab Ulla, but do not know the names of the others. On the other raft there were three people but owing to rain and dark I could not tell who they were. I also saw 4th Engineer sitting on a piece of wood. We called to him, but he could not get to us. The rafts were about 100 to 120 feet apart and we saw them until dark. Next morning I saw only one sail but could not see people. The sail was going away from us.
The ship sank very quickly and nobody went to boat deck. I did not see the Captain or any other members of the crew except those stated.
Three days after the ship sank the food and water finish. The Gunner then said keep the sail up and don't touch it. After about 25 or 26 days the rain came at night. I tasted the water and recovered some strength. I went to the other five with water first but they did not move. I then went to Mohamed Aftab and only one hand moved. I gave him some water and he became stronger and after time he stood up. I tried the five people again but they did not move. I do not know when they died. I was too weak to look at them until the rain came.
Next morning I threw the people into the sea.
Afterwards I catch fish and birds and we both eat them.
The raft drifted to land with a big jungle and next day between about 2 and 3 o'clock I saw a small boy (Malay) and I called to him for food. He ran away and returned with many people. They take us to their house and gave us some rice. About 5 or 6 o'clock the same day the Malays give us to the Japanese. They take us to Japanese Soldier Camp. I asked the Malays what date it was but they could not tell. Later I asked the Japanese and they said 1st February. I do not know the name of the place we landed. I asked the Japanese but they said they would kill me if I asked any more questions. After about 8 days the Japanese take us by motor boat 9 or 10 hours to another place (Chinabang). Here we were questioned by Japanese Magistrate and he said as you two stay in London you are spies. We stayed here 20 or 25 days and were then taken to Kotarajar, Sumatra. After two months in gaol we were taken to Bogitingi and afterwards to gaol. I could not get no news of any other crew of the ship whilst in Japanese hands.
I am sure that the vessel sank on Monday 20th September, 1943 at about 3 p.m. The ship was hit in the middle by the bridge. The Gunner told me it was 20th September but they did not tell me their names. I don not know the names of the Captain, Officers or Engineers, but only knew a few of the British Indians.
Signed by Thakar Miah
In the Presence of R H Johnson 22/1/46



Statement made by Mohamed Aftab, Survivor, Ex 'Fort Longueuil'

I am Mohamed Aftab, Greaser of the 'Fort Longueuil' and sailed in the ship from Barry about 16th July 1943. The ship was torpedoed at 3 p.m. on Monday 20th September 1943. I was on duty in the engine room and the 3rd engineer asked me to get him a cup of tea from the mess-room. I had just reached the mess-room when the ship was torpedoed. I jumped into the sea and about half an hour afterwards I saw a raft with one gunner, one galley boy , one mess-room boy, one donkeyman, Johid Ali and Forman Ullah, Fireman. I do not know the names of the first three and I managed to get on the raft with them and Thakar Miah also got on the raft about the same time.
About 26 days after, the gunner, galley boy, mess-room boy, donkeyman and fireman died. The raft drifted to an Island where there was a big jungle but the Japanese would not tell me the name of the place. They stated that it was the 1st February 1944. After eight days the Japanese take us by motor boat to another place about 12 hours away and eventually we were taken to Sumatra.
Just after the ship was torpedoed and I was on the raft, I saw another raft with four or five people on it, chief mate, 2nd mate, carpenter, apprentice and one fireman, Assab Ullah. The rafts were about one hundred feet apart and remained so until night, but the next morning I could not see the raft.
The torpedo hit the ship in the middle and the vessel sunk in about one minute. I saw the 4th engineer and another man clinging to wood but far away and although we called to them they could not get to the raft owing to the bad weather. Next morning we could not see them. I did not see any other members of the crew after the ship sank.
The ship left Aden for Australia and nine days after leaving Aden the vessel was sunk.
After landing on the island from the raft the Malays carried me to their house and the Japanese come about 5 or 6 at night and take us away. The Japanese then tell me it was the 1st February. I was very weak and cannot remember any more.
Signed by M D Aftab
In the Presence of R H Johnson 23/1/46


Abondon ship Drill



Free fall life raft launching.

After the war, Thakar Miah and Mohamed Aftab were liberated by British troops and taken to Singapore. From Singapore they were flown to Rangoon and then sailed to the U.K. in the Bibby Liner 'Derbyshire' as repatriated prisoners of war, in January 1946.

Nandkishore gitte
Source: Survivors Reports World War - II
Posted by Nandkishore Gitte at 8:48 AM 0 Comments Links to this post
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