Tanker Disasters

IMO's Places of Refuge and the Special Compensation Clause; Erika, Prestige, Castor and 65 Casualties

Written in fulfillment of a Master's in Marine Affairs Degree at the University of Rhode Island in 2005, this is the harrowing tale of some 70 vessels over the past 30 years who have found themselves distressed at sea and begged coastal states for a safe place to stabilize their problems. As this unique research points out, more often than not they were turned away - and in the case of the Prestige in 2002, with disastrous results which polluted the coastlines of three countries, cost over US$5 billion, and indirectly led to the overthrow of the Spanish government. With careful analysis of the salvors point of view and with a windward eye on the environment, this study brings the reader through step-by-step analyses and methodologies through which to debunk or confirm assumptions. The research and listings of the 70 or so casualties themselves make harrowing reading, the analysis sections aret more academic, and the bibliography provides for extensive further research. This research has been requested by and supplied to all parties in the litigation between the Spanish government, the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS), the Bahamas Maritime Authority, and their attorneys in the U.S. and Europe. Eric Wiberg is qualified as a maritime lawyer and a member of the Maritime Law Association of the US and the American Salvage Association. A licensed captain, he has over 80,000 nautical miles of seagoing and command experience. For three years he hepled commercially operate a fleet of tankers for the firm which lost the Braer. He has written several books about travel and naval history. A citizen of the US and Sweden, he grew up in Bahamas and lives, works and writes in New York City. His son is Felix.