MV Hawaiian Patriot

MV Hawaiian Patriot was an oil tanker that sank in the Pacific Ocean in 1977 with the loss of her cargo and one crewmember.

Hawaiian Patriot was 258 m long and measured 51,479 GRT. She was powered by a single 23,000 bhp diesel engine that gave her a speed of 16.5 kn. She was built in 1965 by Mitsui Bussan as Borgila for Fred. Olsen & Co. In 1973, she was sold to Marine Transport Lines and renamed Oswego Patriot, and in 1975 Indo-Pacific Carriers purchased her and gave her the name Hawaiian Patriot. At the time of her loss, she was registered in Liberia.

On February 23, 1977, Hawaiian Patriot was sailing from Indonesia to Honolulu, Hawaii with a cargo of 714,000 barrels of crude oil (99,000 tonnes; 30,000,000 gallons) when she reported by her Master, Capt. John Glykas Greek Nationality from Chios Island, a hull breach about 360 mi west of Honolulu. The following day, she suffered a huge explosion and the crew abandoned the ship, which burned for several hours before sinking. 38 of the 39 crewmembers were rescued by a cargo ship, Philippine Bataan, skippered by Capt Abraham Luspo from Camiguin, Philippines which had reached the scene. The sinking left an estimated 50,000 tonnes of oil in the water, but no cleanup response took place as currents moved the slick west and it did not make landfall. The lost cargo was valued at $12 million by insurer Fireman's Fund Insurance Company.