MS ''Prinsendam'', was a

Holland-America Line Holland America Line N.V. (HAL) is an American cruise line operating as a subsidiary of Carnival Corporation & plc. Founded in 1873 in Rotterdam, Netherlands as the Netherlands-America Steamship Company (NASM), the company operated regular transat ...

cruise ship Cruise ships are large passenger ships used mainly for vacationing. Unlike ocean liners, which are used for transport, cruise ships typically embark on round-trip voyages to various ports of call, where passengers may go on Tourism, tours k ...

built at Shipyard de Merwede in the

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in 1973. She was long and typically carried about 350 passengers and 200 crew members.

Sinking

''Prinsendam'' departed

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, on 30 September 1980 for a long cruise that would take her along the

Inside Passage The Inside Passage () is a coastal route for ships and boats along a network of passages which weave through the islands on the Pacific Northwest coast of the North American Fjordland. The route extends from southeastern Alaska in the United St ...

of British Columbia and

Southeast Alaska Southeast Alaska, often abbreviated to southeast or southeastern, and sometimes called the Alaska(n) panhandle, is the southeastern portion of the U.S. state of Alaska, bordered to the east and north by the northern half of the Canadian provi ...

and then to

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and

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. After calling at

Ketchikan Ketchikan ( ; ) is a city in and the borough seat of the Ketchikan Gateway Borough on Revillagigedo Island of Alaska. It is the state's southeasternmost major settlement. Downtown Ketchikan is a National Historic Landmark District. With a po ...

Alaska Alaska ( ) is a non-contiguous U.S. state on the northwest extremity of North America. Part of the Western United States region, it is one of the two non-contiguous U.S. states, alongside Hawaii. Alaska is also considered to be the north ...

, on 2 October and visiting

Glacier Bay Glacier Bay Basin in southeastern Alaska, in the United States, encompasses the Glacier Bay and surrounding mountains and glaciers, which was first proclaimed a U.S. National Monument on February 25, 1925, and which was later, on December 2, 19 ...

on 3 October, she set out into 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 ...

on the evening of 3 October bound for

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. She was approximately south of Yakutat, Alaska, at 12:40 a.m. on 4 October 1980 when a fire broke out in her

engine room On a ship, the engine room (ER) is the Compartment (ship), compartment where the machinery for marine propulsion is located. The engine room is generally the largest physical compartment of the machinery space. It houses the vessel's prime move ...

.Kiffer, Dave, "A Cruise Ship Goes Down," sitnews.us, October 10, 2015 Accessed 8 July 2023
/ref> Her

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, Cornelis Dirk Wabeke (13 April 1928 – 16 August 2011), declared the fire out of control one hour later and ''Prinsendam'' sent a radio call requesting immediate assistance. The

United States Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and Admiralty law, law enforcement military branch, service branch of the armed forces of the United States. It is one of the country's eight Uniformed services ...

at Communications Station Kodiak in Kodiak, Alaska, requested that ''Prinsendam'' send out an

SOS SOS is a Morse code distress signal (), used internationally, originally established for maritime use. In formal notation SOS is written with an overscore line (), to indicate that the Morse code equivalents for the individual letters of "SOS" a ...

to alert other vessels in the area, but Wabeke declined. Chief Radio Officer Jack van der Zee sent one out anyway about a half-hour later. U.S. Coast Guard,

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, and

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Air Command

CH-113 The Boeing Vertol CH-46 Sea Knight is an American medium-lift tandem-rotor transport helicopter powered by twin turboshaft engines. It was designed by Vertol and manufactured by Boeing Vertol following Vertol's acquisition by Boeing. Develo ...

helicopters, which had greater range, rescued the passengers and crew. The rescue took place during a period of steadily deteriorating weather. The U.S. Coast Guard

cutters Cutter may refer to: Tools * Bolt cutter * Box cutter * Cigar cutter * Cookie cutter * Cutter (hydraulic rescue tool) * Glass cutter * Meat cutter * Milling cutter * Paper cutter * Pizza cutter * Side cutter People * Cutter (surname) * ...

, , and responded in concert with other vessels in the area, and the American

tankers Tanker may refer to: Transportation * Tanker, a tank crewman (US) * Tanker (ship), a ship designed to carry bulk liquids ** Chemical tanker, a type of tanker designed to transport chemicals in bulk ** Oil tanker, also known as a petroleum tanke ...

''Sohio Intrepid'' and ''Williamsburgh'' assisted on scene. ''Williamsburgh'' served a vital role as a communications platform and was the first vessel to arrive on scene and take passengers on board. The ''Sohio Intrepid'' served as a platform for one of the U.S. Air Force helicopters that was unable to refuel in flight. Two U.S. Air Force pararescuemen went aboard one of ''Prinsendam''′s

lifeboats Lifeboat may refer to: Rescue vessels * Lifeboat (shipboard), a small craft aboard a ship to allow for emergency escape * Lifeboat (rescue), a boat designed for sea rescues * Airborne lifeboat, an air-dropped boat used to save downed airmen ...

, and this boat was the last rescued after a lookout aboard ''Woodrush'',

Seaman Seaman may refer to: * Sailor, a member of a marine watercraft's crew * Seaman (rank), a military rank in some navies * Seaman (name) (including a list of people with the name) * ''Seaman'' (video game), a 1999 simulation video game for the Seg ...

Louis Roderick, sighted a

flare A flare, also sometimes called a fusée, fusee, or bengala, bengalo in several European countries, is a type of pyrotechnic that produces a bright light or intense heat without an explosion. Flares are used for distress signaling, illuminatio ...

from the boat and word of the sighting was relayed to the on-scene commander aboard ''Boutwell''. The rescue is particularly noteworthy because of the distance traveled by the rescuers, the coordination of independent organizations, and the fact that all 520 passengers and crew were rescued without loss of life or serious injury. ''Prinsendam'' finally

capsize Capsizing or keeling over occurs when a boat or ship is rolled on its side or further by wave action, instability or wind force beyond the angle of positive static stability or it is Turtling (sailing), upside down in the water. The act of reco ...

d and sank on 11 October 1980.

References

External links

*David J. Ring, Jr., N1EA, Radio Officer, "T/T WILLIAMSBURGH"
"SOS from ms PRINSENDAM - Marine Radio History - Morse Code"
August 17, 2018. {{DEFAULTSORT:Prinsendam (1972) 1980 in Alaska 1972 ships Maritime incidents in 1980 Ship fires Ships built in the Netherlands Ships of the Holland America Line Shipwrecks of the Alaska coast Ships sunk with no fatalities