Shipwreck of the Haven, Arrenzano, Italy – 11th April 1991

The MT Haven, formerly known as Amoco Milford Haven, is a Cypriot tanker built in 1973.

It sank in the Gulf of Genoa in 1991, causing an oil spill.

The wreck has become an underwater dive site.

The Amoco Milford Haven is built in Cadiz, Spain, by Astilleros Españoles S.A. on the same model as the Amoco Cadiz. The ship was launched in 1973 to transport crude oil from the Middle East. In 1978, the Amoco Cadiz was wrecked off the coast of Brittany; the Milford Haven was hit by a missile in the Persian Gulf during the Iran-Iraq war in 1988. After heavy repairs in Singapore, it was sold, then lent by its new owners to the company Troodos, for which it moved between Kharg, Iran, and the Mediterranean Sea. On 11th April 1991, the MT Haven unloaded 230 000 tonnes of crude oil on the Multedo floating platform, 11 kilometres off the coast of Genoa, Italy. After the transfer of the first 80,000 tonnes, it separates from the platform for routine operation.

At that time, the vessel’s mate, Donatos Lilis, explained that he heard a loud noise, like iron bars colliding, possibly the rupture of a pump cover. An explosion ensued, during which five crew members died instantly, then a fire spread on the boat. Because of the heat of the flames, the metal parts of the hull expand and deform, and the oil leaks from the tanks to the sea.

The Italian authorities quickly dispatch firefighters to fight the fire, and have more than 10 km of inflatable barriers one meter below the surface around the ship, to try to control the oil spill. The next day, an attempt was made to tow the vessel to shore and facilitate the response, but the hull broke. It ends up sinking on April 14, two kilometers from the coast, between Arenzano and Varazze.

When the wreck is declared safe, a pocket submarine is used to inspect it. It then appears that the stern had struck a rocky spur, without however opening any new tears in the hull, before grounding on a sandy bottom.

Some of the remaining oil in the hull during the accident burned in the fire, with the remainder spilled to the surface of the water. Most of the surface oil can be sucked because it is relatively liquid, the residue being in solid form. The resulting oil spill polluted the Italian and French coasts for ten years, mainly around Genoa.

The wreck of the Haven is the largest in the Mediterranean Sea, and lies 30 to 80 m deep off Genoa. It is now a very popular diving site for «Tech» dives.

Phoctopus dives on this wreck on June 23rd, 2011, 20 years after the accident. The Italian authorities wished to pay tribute to the deceased sailors and the forces mobilized to fight what could have been the biggest oil spill in the Mediterranean Sea.