Texaco Caribbean 1971

Texaco Caribbean was a Panamanian oil tanker built in 1965 that met disaster in the Dover Strait on January 11, 1971.

While sailing in ballast from the Netherlands to Trinidad, she was struck in thick fog by the Peruvian freighter Paracas, which had strayed outside the traffic lanes. The collision caused the tanker to explode, split in two, and sink, spilling about 600 tonnes of bunker fuel oil. Twenty-two crew were rescued but 8 lives were lost. Paracas, carrying fishmeal and fish oil, was badly damaged but towed to Hamburg for repairs.

The wreck of Texaco Caribbean soon became a deadly hazard.

The next day, the West German freighter Brandenburg struck the submerged remains and sank within minutes, killing 21 of her 32 crew.

On February 27, the Greek vessel Nikki also collided with the wreck site and went down with her entire crew.

Despite lightships and buoys marking the area, multiple ships ignored warnings.

The wrecks of Texaco Caribbean, Brandenburg, and Nikki were eventually cleared by Risdon Beazley Ulrich Harms Ltd in an 18-month operation, bringing an end to one of the most dangerous stretches of wreckage in the Channel’s modern history.
Source: Maritime Archives