(also ''Ryō Un Maru'') was a Japanese

fishing boat A fishing vessel is a boat or ship used to catch fish and other valuable nektonic aquatic animals (e.g. shrimps/prawns, krills, coleoids, etc.) in the sea, lake or river. Humans have used different kinds of surface vessels in commercial, arti ...

that was washed away from its mooring in

Aomori Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan in the Tōhoku region. The prefecture's capital, largest city, and namesake is the city of Aomori (city), Aomori. Aomori is the northernmost prefecture on Japan's main island, Honshu, and is border ...

by the March

2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami On 11 March 2011, at 14:46:24 Japan Standard Time, JST (05:46:24 UTC), a 9.0–9.1 Submarine earthquake, undersea megathrust earthquake occurred in the Pacific Ocean, east of the Oshika Peninsula of the Tōhoku region. It lasted approx ...

and drifted across the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is ...

. It was spotted a year later by a routine

Royal Canadian Air Force The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; ) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environmental commands within the unified Can ...

air patrol about off the coast of

Haida Gwaii Haida Gwaii (; / , literally "Islands of the Haida people"), previously known as the Queen Charlotte Islands, is an archipelago located between off the British Columbia Coast, northern Pacific coast in the Canadian province of British Columbia ...

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

. The unmanned hulk entered U.S. waters on 1 April 2012, and, after salvage attempts failed, was sunk by the U.S. Coast Guard on 5 April 2012 to prevent the hulk from becoming a hazard to navigation.

History

120405-G-RS249-005-USCG responds to Japanese vessel in Gulf of Alaska

The ''Ryou-Un Maru'', a

fishing vessel A fishing vessel is a boat or ship used to fishing, catch fish and other valuable nektonic aquatic animals (e.g. shrimps/prawns, krills, coleoids, etc.) in the sea, lake or river. Humans have used different kinds of surface vessels in commercial ...

in the Japanese merchant fleet, was originally built around 1982. It was owned by a

Hokkaido is the list of islands of Japan by area, second-largest island of Japan and comprises the largest and northernmost prefectures of Japan, prefecture, making up its own list of regions of Japan, region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō fr ...

-based fishing company and was used for shrimping or

squid A squid (: squid) is a mollusc with an elongated soft body, large eyes, eight cephalopod limb, arms, and two tentacles in the orders Myopsida, Oegopsida, and Bathyteuthida (though many other molluscs within the broader Neocoleoidea are also ...

ding. After a long service career the ship's owner decided it was too old for continued use and moored it in

Honshu , historically known as , is the largest of the four main islands of Japan. It lies between the Pacific Ocean (east) and the Sea of Japan (west). It is the list of islands by area, seventh-largest island in the world, and the list of islands by ...

pending sale. When the Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami struck in March 2011, ''Ryou-Un Maru'' broke free and was set adrift. Like most countries, Japanese law requires a ship be disposed of or dismantled properly before allowing its registration to be canceled. However, all parties assumed the vessel sank in the disaster, so the

Japan Coast Guard The is the coast guard responsible for the protection of the Geography of Japan#Composition, topography and geography, coastline of Japan under the oversight of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. It consists of about ...

granted the owner an exception. For over a year the ''Ryou-Un Maru'' drifted across the Pacific as a

ghost ship A ghost ship, also known as a phantom ship, is a ship, vessel with no living crew aboard; it may be a fictional ghostly vessel, such as the ''Flying Dutchman'', or a physical Flotsam, jetsam, lagan and derelict, derelict found adrift with its cre ...

and was carried eastward by the

Kuroshio Current The , also known as the Black Current or is a north-flowing, warm ocean current on the west side of the North Pacific Ocean basin. It was named for the deep blue appearance of its waters. Similar to the Gulf Stream in the North Atlantic, the Ku ...

. On 20 March 2012, it was spotted in Canadian waters by

CP-140 Aurora aircraft. As its registration had been canceled, the ship no longer had a legal owner responsible for it. On 4 April 2012, the U.S. Coast Guard dropped a tracking

buoy A buoy (; ) is a buoyancy, floating device that can have many purposes. It can be anchored (stationary) or allowed to drift with ocean currents. History The ultimate origin of buoys is unknown, but by 1295 a seaman's manual referred to navig ...

aboard as the vessel drifted approximately southwest of

Sitka, Alaska Sitka (; ) is a municipal home rule, unified Consolidated city-county, city-borough in the southeast portion of the U.S. state of Alaska. It was under Russian America, Russian rule from 1799 to 1867. The city is situated on the west side of Ba ...

. The next day, the crew of the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter assessed the ship's condition. On 5 April 2012, the Canadian fishing vessel ''Bernice C'' attempted to salvage the stricken vessel, but a ruptured fuel tank proved impossible to pump out and a tow failed. The U.S. Coast Guard then determined that sinking the abandoned vessel was necessary to prevent it running aground or becoming a hazard to navigation. USCGC ''Anacapa'' fired upon it with a Mk 38 25mm autocannon, holing and sinking the ''Ryou-Un Maru'' in approximately of water in the

Gulf of Alaska The Gulf of Alaska ( Tlingit: ''Yéil T'ooch’'') is an arm of the Pacific Ocean defined by the curve of the southern coast of Alaska, stretching from the Alaska Peninsula and Kodiak Island in the west to the Alexander Archipelago in the ...

off the coast of the Alaskan Panhandle.

References

External links

U.S. Coast Guard photos of shellingU.S. Coast Guard video of the ship being fired uponMFV Ryou-Un Maru (+2012)
Wrecksite.eu {{DEFAULTSORT:Ryo Un Maru 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami Fishing vessels of Japan Shipwrecks in the Pacific Ocean Maritime incidents in 2012 1980s ships Maritime incidents in 2011 Ghost ships