MV ''Flare'' (P3GL2) was a Cypriot-registered

bulk carrier A bulk carrier or bulker is a merchant ship specially naval architecture, designed to transport unpackaged bulk cargo—such as Grain trade, grain, coal, ore, steel coils, and cement—in its cargo holds. Since the first specialized bulk carrie ...

that sank with the loss of 21 lives in the Gulf of St. Lawrence on January 16, 1998. ''Flare'' was en route from

Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , ; ; ) is the second-largest List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city in the Netherlands after the national capital of Amsterdam. It is in the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of South Holland, part of the North S ...

Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...

when she broke in two during severe weather, approximately west of

Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon Saint Pierre and Miquelon ( ), officially the Territorial Collectivity of Saint Pierre and Miquelon (), is a self-governing territorial overseas collectivity of France in the northwestern Atlantic Ocean, located near the Canadian province of ...

on January 16, 1998. 21 crew members perished, and four survived. The crew was able to send one truncated 20-second distress call that was received by the

Canadian Coast Guard The Canadian Coast Guard (CCG; ) is the coast guard of Canada. Formed in 1962, the coast guard is tasked with marine search and rescue (SAR), communication, navigation, and transportation issues in Canadian waters, such as navigation aids and i ...

, who had to determine who and where the ship was within an area with a radius. Some of ''Flares crewmembers on the sinking stern section saw the bow of another ship appear to approach them, only to realize that it was the separated front half of their own vessel. The propeller on the stern section had still been turning, and had brought them back towards it. The survivors were rescued by a

CH-113 Labrador The Boeing Vertol CH-46 Sea Knight is an American medium-lift tandem rotors, tandem-rotor transport helicopter powered by twin turboshaft aircraft engine, engines. It was designed by Piasecki Helicopter, Vertol and manufactured by Boeing Helico ...

helicopter from

CFB Greenwood Canadian Forces Base Greenwood , or CFB Greenwood, is a Canadian Forces Base located east of Greenwood, Nova Scotia. It is primarily operated as an air force base by the Royal Canadian Air Force and is one of two bases in the country using the ...

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, located on its east coast. It is one of the three Maritime Canada, Maritime provinces and Population of Canada by province and territory, most populous province in Atlan ...

, belonging to 413 Search and Rescue Squadron of the

Canadian Forces The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF; , FAC) are the unified Military, military forces of Canada, including sea, land, and air commands referred to as the Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Army and the Royal Canadian Air Force. Under the ''National Defenc ...

. The helicopter's crew consisted of aircraft commander Capt. C. Brown, co-pilot Capt. R. Gough, flight engineer/winch operator M.Cpl. R. Butler, and SAR Technicians Sgt. Tony Isaacs and M.Cpl. P. Jackman. The lightly clothed survivors were taken to hospital in

and treated for extreme

hypothermia Hypothermia is defined as a body core temperature below in humans. Symptoms depend on the temperature. In mild hypothermia, there is shivering and mental confusion. In moderate hypothermia, shivering stops and confusion increases. In severe ...

. The bodies that were recovered were collected by

Marine Nationale The French Navy (, , ), informally (, ), is the maritime arm of the French Armed Forces and one of the four military service branches of France. It is among the largest and most powerful naval forces in the world recognised as being a blu ...

, and

Royal Canadian Navy The Royal Canadian Navy (RCN; , ''MRC'') is the Navy, naval force of Canada. The navy is one of three environmental commands within the Canadian Armed Forces. As of February 2024, the RCN operates 12 s, 12 s, 4 s, 4 s, 8 s, and several auxiliary ...

ships including HMCS ''Montreal''⁠—and a

helicopter of

103 Search and Rescue Squadron 103 Search and Rescue Squadron of the Royal Canadian Air Force is a search and rescue unit based at 9 Wing Gander on the Canadian island of Newfoundland. The squadron is responsible for a large area covering the offshore waters of Canada's Excl ...

from

CFB Gander Canadian Forces Base Gander (also CFB Gander, ), is a Canadian Forces base located in Gander, Newfoundland and Labrador. It is operated as an air force base by the Royal Canadian Air Force and is home to search and rescue operations that cover a ...

. ''Flare''s stern sank within 30 minutes. The floating bow section drifted on the surface for several days, eventually sinking south of

Cape Breton Island Cape Breton Island (, formerly '; or '; ) is a rugged and irregularly shaped island on the Atlantic coast of North America and part of the province of Nova Scotia, Canada. The island accounts for 18.7% of Nova Scotia's total area. Although ...

. The

Transportation Safety Board of Canada The Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB, ), officially the Canadian Transportation Accident Investigation and Safety Board () is the agency of the Government of Canada responsible for advancing transportation safety in Canada. It is acc ...

determined that the following contributed to ''Flare''s sinking: # Severe weather # The ship was traveling empty to Montreal (to pick up a load of grain), which caused her to ride high in the water. The violent waves caused the bow to hit the water hard during each swell. # The ballast tanks, which ordinarily would be flooded to cause the ship to ride lower in the water, were not able to be completely filled as a number of them were corroded and needed to be repaired. # The steel in the hull was found (after the sinking) to have fatigue cracks. in addition, ''Flare'' was over 25 years old, approximately 8 years past the average lifespan of a bulk carrier. The combination of the ship riding high on violent swells, hitting the water hard and with fatigue cracks, caused the ship to break apart.

References

1972 ships Shipwrecks of the Newfoundland and Labrador coast Shipwrecks of the Nova Scotia coast Maritime incidents in 1998

External links

Over the Waves: M/V Flare
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