Oil Recovery

[Subdeacon Joe]

US Venture Recovers 230,000 gallons of Oil From Wreck of WW2 German Heavy Cruiser Prinz Eugen

 

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A warship that has been at the bottom of the ocean for more than seven decades has been lightened up considerably by a team of specialists from the U.S. Navy. In an operation that took approximately two years, they removed almost 230,000 gallons of oil that had remained on the ship in 173 tanks.

Originally part of the German Navy, the Prinz Eugen was given to the U.S. after World War II as a victory prize.

The Americans used the ship to learn about the survivability of warships during atomic attacks. It was loaded with cargo and oil, then subjected to two atomic bomb tests, called “Operation Crossroads.” It later sank at the Kwajalein Atoll in the Pacific, after the second test had damaged it.

USS Prinz Eugen (IX 300) at sea during Operation “Crossroads”. ¾ view STBD forward.

Heading up the oil salvage project was Stephanie Bocek, a supervisor with the Navy Salvage and Diving Department (SUPSALV). The project was done in conjunction with the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command/Army Forces Strategic Command. The Navy’s salvage vessel USNS Salvor was involved in the operation.

The team spent two years planning and researching the best methods for execution of the mission. First, they selected a firm that could provide a suitable commercial oil tanker to hold the recovered oil and then deliver it to a recycling center. A tanker called the Humberwas chosen.

The “Baker” explosion, part of Operation Crossroads, a nuclear weapon test by the United States military at Bikini Atoll, Micronesia, on 25 July 1946.

Humber, in conjunction with Salvor, was placed above the former German vessel so that the extraction of oil could be handled as efficiently and as smoothly as possible.

This maneuver was tricky, because Prinz Eugen was close to shore, so the shallow water meant that the ships’ anchors couldn’t be dropped. Finally, the Army/Navy team decided to have the local harbor tug, the Mystic, collect the anchors and take them to suitably deep water. Then came the task of actually removing the oil from Prinz Eugen‘s tanks.

Prinz Eugen’s launch. Photo: Bundesarchiv, DVM 10 Bild-23-63-14 / CC-BY-SA 3.0

This was accomplished using “hot taps” in which every tank was tapped, then all the retrievable oil was removed. Once empty, each tank was completely sealed, to ensure that no remaining drops of oil could ooze out and contaminate the ocean.

The oil’s presence – even though contained – had presented a threat to the pristine waters surrounding the atoll as the ship deteriorated. Additionally, both the area in general and the wreck of Prinz Eugen specifically are popular with recreational divers, so now the oil presents no risk to them, either.

USS Prinz Eugen passing through the Panama Canal in 1946. Note the missing guns on her A turret.

Captain Keith Lehnhardt of SUPSALV, recently said in an interview that “this project was an incredible opportunity to showcase the U.S. Navy salvage community’s capabilities.

SUPSALV had prior experience…so we were well positioned to lead this project. This also serves as an example of exceptional partnership for future oil spill responses, salvage operations, and other emergencies.”

Never before has so much oil been retrieved from a sunken wreck. Whatever lessons can be learned from the extraction could help prevent future accidents from being as severe as a number of those in the past.

An aerial photo of the wreck of Prinz Eugen in 2018

For example, in 1989 the Exxon-Valdez oil spill in Alaska caused millions of gallons of oil to pour into the sea. Crew fatigue and mechanical problems were blamed. The accident caused a major review of the industry, and changes were implemented as a direct result.

More recently, the “Deepwater Horizon” disaster in 2010 spilled millions of gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico. It cost 11 lives, and more than 15 people were seriously injured.

Deepwater Horizon oil spill –

Read another story from us: Chinese Vultures Plunder WWII Shipwrecks for Scrap Metal

Whenever man and nature collide, there are terrible consequences. In the Deepwater Horizon disaster, the deleterious effects on shorelines, mammals, and sea life were almost incalculable.

Perhaps lessons learned from operations like the oil’s retrieval from the Prinz Eugen can help ensure that man, when venturing to the sea in the future, makes fewer mistakes and causes fewer calamities.

 

 

 

 

 

[Michigan Slim]

"pristine waters surrounding the atoll". Didn't we nuke it? Radiation must be a boon to the environment then. 

[Sixgun Sheridan]

6 hours ago, Michigan Slim said:

"pristine waters surrounding the atoll". Didn't we nuke it? Radiation must be a boon to the environment then. 

 

The A-bombs were detonated at Bikini Atoll. The Prinz Eugen was later towed to Kwajalein Atoll which is where she sank. Just one of many terrible wastes of a historic ship from that war. Apparently she must not be radioactive because divers visit her all the time.

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[Edward R S Canby, SASS#59971]

7 hours ago, Michigan Slim said:

"pristine waters surrounding the atoll". Didn't we nuke it? Radiation must be a boon to the environment then. 

I've snorkeled in the lagoon at Enewetak Atoll - another Pacific bomb test site.  The waters of these atoll lagoons are indeed pristine.  They are teaming with marine life.  There are strong currents that flow across the lagoons that flushed most of the radioactive fallout out to sea after an atmospheric test.  The remaining fallout was buried in sediments.  Much fallout remained on the islands however.  But even they have thriving sea bird colonies.  Radiation is not a boon to the environment but the lack of humans allows wildlife to thrive.

[Snake River Clay SASS #34984]

Not exactly on topic, but this is my Dad in the cap I got him for Christmas. 

[Calamity Kris]

Our family lived on Kwaj for a time.  My brother snorkeled the Eugen many times.  Great to hear they were able to clean it up.