Broken hatches and open doors led to the tragic sinking of the Argos Georgia, an investigation has found

A preliminary report from the UK’s Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) has found that the sinking of the fishing vessel Argos Georgia off the Falkland Islands on July 22 was due to the failure of a starboard side door. Faro de Vigo reported.

The accident occurred 190 miles from Port Stanley in the Falkland Islands during a severe storm with 10-meter waves and winds in excess of 50 knots. The door, which closed upwards like a shutter, gradually opened, allowing water to flow uncontrollably into the ship.

“The ongoing investigation has revealed that the clamshell door on the starboard side of the Argos Georgia slowly lowered to the fully open position. This allowed significant amounts of water to enter the ship,” the British government said in its report.

The crew was unable to stop the flooding as the interior doors remained open, which facilitated the spread of water to various compartments. Despite the crew’s desperate attempts, the ship’s flooding increased and ultimately led to its sinking. The disaster killed 13 crew members, including four Spaniards, and 14 others survived.

The ship’s distress signal was recorded at 2:11 p.m. local time and the main engine stopped at around 2:45 p.m. At 16:00 some crew members began evacuating the ship in lifeboats. However, the official demolition order was not given until 4:23 p.m.

The report highlighted the urgent need to assess ships’ side doors and the importance of keeping internal doors closed in the event of possible flooding. Survivors, confirmed by the second officer and three Indonesian crew members, have attributed the tragedy to the failure of the starboard door.

“All owners, operators and masters of fishing vessels fitted with side doors are strongly advised to ensure that an appropriate and sufficient assessment of the risk of water entering the vessel through the side doors has been carried out and documented,” the UK said Government .