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Seiner "Shkval"

The seiner "Shkval" was a Ukrainian fishing vessel, registered at the port of the urban-type settlement of Chornomorske, which tragically sank on 22 July 1998 in the Black Sea near Cape Lukul as a result of the detonation of a Soviet WWII depth charge that had been raised by its trawl.

Overview

On 22 July 1998 the seiner "Shkval" was conducting commercial fishing in the Black Sea near Cape Lukul (20 nautical miles northwest of Sevastopol). While hauling in the trawl, the sailors accidentally pulled a black metal barrel from the depths, which turned out to be a large WWII-era depth charge. Within a few minutes the bomb exploded, causing the vessel to sink instantly and killing almost the entire crew under the command of Captain Khrushchov.

The only survivors of the disaster were the cook Andrii Mozhaiskyi (who at the moment of the explosion was in the galley) and the ship's dog Manya.

Key Details / Subtopics

  • Preconditions and the disaster:
  • The vessel was registered at the fishing port of the urban-type settlement of Chornomorske and was fishing in the area of Cape Lukul.
  • While hauling in the trawl, Captain Khrushchov called the recovered bomb an "old acquaintance" and, contrary to safety instructions (which require immediately cutting the trawl and moving away), decided to try to recover the fish.
  • The explosion tore off the wheelhouse and killed everyone on deck. The vessel went to the bottom within seconds.
  • Course of the rescue operation:
  • The surviving cook Andrii Mozhaiskyi found himself in the open sea without means of communication. His orientation toward the shore was provided by the ship's dog Manya.
  • The flash of the explosion was noticed by the pilot of a Simferopol – Istanbul passenger plane, and the passenger vessel "General Vatutin" transmitted a radio signal with precise coordinates.
  • At 17:00 a diving boat of the Naval Forces of Ukraine lifted Mozhaiskyi and the dog from the water.
  • Causes and connection with Soviet test ranges:
  • The waters off Cape Lukul had for almost half a century been a closed testing range of the Soviet Black Sea Fleet, where a significant quantity of unexploded ordnance remained.
  • A hastily lifted ban in the 1990s on civilian navigation without prior complete mine clearance of the waters led to a series of tragedies (in particular the loss of the vessel SAOR in 1996 and the seiner "Shkval" in 1998).