MTS Oceanos 1991
Marker: recorded wreck position (Modern).
Key facts
| Name | MTS Oceanos | Wikidata label |
|---|---|---|
| Year lost | 1991 | English Wikipedia lead text (year following a loss verb, parsed) |
| Era | Modern | derived from year |
| Ship type | cruise ship | Wikidata P31 instance of |
| Nationality / flag | South Africa | Wikidata P8047 country of registry |
| Sea / ocean | INDIAN OCEAN | Natural Earth marine areas (public domain), point-in-polygon |
| Nearest coast | South Africa | Natural Earth (public domain); approx. 31 km from land |
| Position | -32.1208, 29.1203 | Wikidata P625 coordinate location (CC0) |
About the wreck
MTS Oceanos was a French-built and Greek-owned cruise ship that sank in 1991 when it suffered uncontrolled flooding. Her captain, Yiannis Avranas, and some of the crew fled the ship without helping the passengers; they were later convicted of negligence. The ship's entertainers made a mayday transmission, launched lifeboats, and helped South African Marines land on the ship from naval helicopters. The actions of the entertainers enabled the rescue of all 571 passengers and crew and attracted international headlines.
Epirotiki Lines had lost two other ships within the three preceding years: the company's flagship Pegasus only two months before, and MV Jupiter, three years before.
Diving & visiting
The Oceanos wreck lies at a depth of between 92 m (302 ft) and 97 m (318 ft), about 5 km (2.7 nmi; 3.1 mi) offshore. Divers have visited her, but strong currents make the dive difficult. Photographs taken in 2002 show that the bridge section has collapsed.
Location
- Recorded position: -32.1208, 29.1203 (Wikidata P625 coordinate location (CC0); may be approximate)
- Sea / ocean: INDIAN OCEAN
- Nearest coast: South Africa
Wreck positions on this site are for interest only and are not for navigation. Many wrecks are war graves or legally protected: never disturb human remains or remove artefacts, and check local law before diving.
Text adapted from the Wikipedia article MTS Oceanos (revision 1378915238), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: excerpted from the article lead section and section(s) “Wreck”; condensed by selecting paragraphs; citations and formatting removed. No text added. This excerpt is available under the same licence.
Wreck facts from Wikidata (CC0).
Browse more: Africa wrecks · wrecks off South Africa · INDIAN OCEAN · Modern