HMS Bounty Sinks Off N.C. Coast

[mjsigns]

HMS Bounty Sinks Off N.C. Coast, 2 Crew Missing
Historic Wooden Tall Ship Has Made Frequent Visits To Savannah

Credit: Jeff Haynes / AFP - Getty Images, file HMS Bounty

Credit: HMS Bounty Website, HMS Bounty

By: Will Nunley with NBC News Blog | WSAV News 3 - WSAV.com
Published: October 29, 2012

Update from NBC Station WITN-TV:

"The HMS Bounty, a 180-foot, three-mast tall ship, was last marked about 90 miles southeast of Hatteras.
The ship has sunk, according to the Coast Guard at 8:45 a.m. Monday.
MORE @... http://www.witn.com/home/headlines/Coas ... 28331.html
AND @... http://www2.wsav.com/news/2012/oct/29/b ... r-4847422/

[Flanders]

I hope they find the missing crew.. But why in the world were they sailing out in the middle of a hurricane?

[Sea Dawg]

must have a yankee crew on that ship

[Gulf Coast]

Man, thats a shame

[woopty]

"It is unclear why the boat set out to sea with Sandy bearing down."

WTF were they doing out there????

[mjsigns]

I think they were trying to get her away from her moorings. If she got loose in the harbor/river, she could smash and destroy smaller vessels also kept in the river/harbor. Historically, boats sustain less damage when they are at sea at anchor as opposed to moored to a dock (even if they are moored securely). It would probably take a lot to keep her steady at the dock in high winds and high tide, and the river bottom probably wouldn't be strong enough to allow the the anchor(s) to hold fast. (I am just speculating and by no means an expert in the area)

[CarolinaJim]

They had lost power while trying to make East of the storm. It is unclear if they started taking water and it caused the power loss or if the power loss caused them to take on water. Had they not lost power they would have not had a problem.

Just like the Navy all up and down the affected coast they put to sea because it is generally safer than at moorings.

The Bounty was en route from CT to St Pete FL and had left last week.

[mjsigns]

More Here :
http://news.yahoo.com/14-rescued-2-miss ... 09536.html
...The ship left Connecticut on Thursday when Sandy was over Cuba, and its path and effect on the East Coast was still somewhat certain. Sandy was then forecast to be several hundred miles off the Carolinas coast.
Days before it sank, the vessel had rerouted to avoid the brunt of Sandy. However, a statement on its website acknowledged, "this will be a tough voyage for Bounty," the Tampa Bay Times reported...
The captain and one other person are listed as "missing".