Marine Incident Summary Report: Near Grounding of the Liberian Tank Ship Patriot Bay of Campeche, Mexico

On October 15, 1995, the Liberianregistered motor vessel Patriot, a 95,000 deadweight-ton1 tank ship (see figures 1 and 2), came within 10 miles (2-3 hours) of grounding on the north side of the Yucatan Peninsula near Campeche, Mexico, while navigating in rough seas and high winds associated with Hurricane Roxanne. Had the grounding occurred, it could have resulted in significant damage to the ship’s structure, injuries or deaths among the 27 crewmembers, and damage to the environment. The vessel was en route from Galveston, Texas, to Dos Bocas, Mexico, when the near-grounding incident occurred.