Daring Rescue During Gale Saves 30 From Sinking Ship

As they were preparing to abandon ship in raging seas and gale-force winds, all 30 people on board the sinking cargo carrier Mount Olympus were rescued Saturday by a Canadian navy helicopter.

“They were about ready to abandon ship,” said Capt. Dan Burden, who battled darkness, high winds and a low fuel supply to make four harrowing trips to the 715-foot ship.

“The weather was too rough for them to go into the lifeboats. The ship was rolling a fair amount. I could see into one hold where the lid of the container had collapsed. I could see the waves and water rushing through the cracks. They were unable to steer it. It could have gone down at any time.”

Flares from a circling aircraft helped light the sky as the helicopter hovered over the ship and lowered Master Cpl. Rob Fisher to the heaving deck below.

Fisher made more than 30 drops onto the ship, bringing up the 29 crew members and the chief engineer’s wife one at a time into the helicopter with the help of a horse-collar style harness.

They ferried loads of 10, nine, six and five to a nearby cargo ship that had been unable to help the Mount Olympus because of the high seas.