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Tyneside: port chaplain shocked at ship sinking


The Baltic Ace

The Baltic Ace

An Apostleship of the Sea port chaplain has spoken of meeting the crew of the cargo ship that sank in the North Sea on Wednesday, leaving five crew members dead and six missing. The Baltic Ace cargo ship sank off the coast of Belgium and the Netherlands after colliding with a container ship. The coastguard say there is little chance of the six seafarers still being alive in the freezing waters.

Paul Atkinson, chaplain to the ports of Tyne and Blyth, heard the news when he was on board the sister ship, The Nordic, in Tyne Dock.

“The crew were shocked that the Baltic Ace had sank. The bosun was under the impression that the ship had sunk closer to the shore and that al the crew had got off and got into lifeboats.

“I’ve been on board the ship about a dozen times. It’s been visiting the Tyne for a couple of years. On my last visit I did what I usually do, such as asking the crew if they wanted to visit the seafarers centre, go shopping in South Shields, or if they needed sim cards.

He added that many of the crew were from the Philippines. “It’s a tragedy. And it highlights that, despite all the modern technology on ships, being a seafarer is still a very dangerous job.

Paul has two volunteer ship visitors working with him and between them they make around 1,000 ship visits per year. Over Christmas they will be visiting seafarers who are in port with presents and arranging for those who are Catholic to attend Mass.

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