View source for Engineering:Burmah Agate

{|{{Infobox ship begin |display title=ital}}
{{Infobox ship image
| Ship image=[[File:Burmah Agate.jpg|300px|Burmah Agate]]
| Ship caption=
}}
{{Infobox ship career
| Hide header=
| Ship country= Liberia
| Ship flag= {{shipboxflag|Liberia|civil}}
| Ship name= ''Burmah Agate''
| Ship namesake=
| Ship owner=
| Ship operator=
| Ship registry=
| Ship route=
| Ship ordered=
| Ship awarded=
| Ship builder=
| Ship original cost=
| Ship yard number=
| Ship way number=
| Ship laid down=
| Ship launched=
| Ship sponsor=
| Ship christened=
| Ship completed=
| Ship acquired=
| Ship maiden voyage=
| Ship in service=
| Ship out of service=
| Ship renamed=
| Ship reclassified=
| Ship refit=
| Ship struck=
| Ship reinstated=
| Ship homeport=
| Ship identification=
| Ship motto= 
| Ship nickname=
| Ship fate= Scrapped, 1980
| Ship notes=
| Ship badge=
}}
{{Infobox ship characteristics
| Hide header=
| Header caption=<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.c4tx.org/ctx/job/cdb/precis.php5?key=19791101_001 |title=Casualty Database |work=Center for Tankship Excellence |year=2012 |accessdate=19 July 2012}}</ref>
| Ship class=
| Ship type=[[Engineering:Oil tanker|Oil tanker]]
| Ship tonnage={{DWT|61,674}}
| Ship displacement=
| Ship length=
| Ship beam= 
| Ship height=
| Ship draught= 
| Ship depth=
| Ship hold depth= 
| Ship power=
| Ship propulsion=
| Ship speed=
| Ship range=
| Ship capacity=
| Ship crew=37 
| Ship sensors=
| Ship EW=
| Ship notes=
}}
|}
The '''M/T ''Burmah Agate''''' was an oil tanker that was involved in a nautical collision and subsequent oil spill near Galveston, {{wipe|Texas}} in November 1979. 31 crewmen were killed in the collision, and the oil spill damaged the local environment.

== Incident ==
On the morning of November 1, 1979, the Liberian-flagged ''Burmah Agate'', while in the customary anchorage area for the Port of Houston inbound to Galveston Bay with 400,000 barrels of fuel{{ref|Govinfo1|A}}, was struck by the outbound freighter ''Mimosa'' just outside the entrance to the Galveston Bay channel. The ''Mimosa'' struck the ''Burmah Agate'' on its [[Engineering:Starboard|starboard]] side, tearing an {{convert|8|ft}} by {{convert|15|ft}} hole near Cargo Tank No. 5, and setting off an explosion that ignited the now-leaking oil.<ref name=":1" /> The tanker started to founder, with fire raging on its starboard side and superstructure. The ''Mimosa'' was also set afire by the explosion - its crew evacuated, and the vessel was left without command, circling its dropped anchor.<ref name=":2" /> Unable to shut off the ''Mimosa''<nowiki/>'s engines due to the fires, the rescuers eventually fouled its [[Engineering:Propeller|propeller]], and ''Mimosa'' was towed to Galveston several days after the collision.<ref name=":1" /> 

The U.S. Coast Guard dispatched a Sikorsky HH-52A helicopter (tail number 1426, currently in the Smithsonian Air and Space Collection)<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.helis.com/database/news/hh-52_museum/|title=US Coast Guard HH-52A to the Smithsonian Collection|website=Helis.com}}</ref> and the cutter {{Ship|USCGC|Valiant|WMEC-621|2}} to begin search and rescue operations, lifting men off the ships using helicopters. By 12:30, all 26 crew members of the ''Mimosa'' had been accounted for, but only 6<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=Burmah Agate &#124; IncidentNews &#124; NOAA |url=https://incidentnews.noaa.gov/incident/6253 |website=incidentnews.noaa.gov}}</ref><ref name=":1">Oil spill case histories, 1967-1991 summaries of significant U.S. and international spills (govinfo.gov)</ref> of ''Burmah Agate''{{'}}s 37 crew survived, and 4 bodies were recovered.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |url=http://testimony.ost.dot.gov/test/pasttest/99test/991103_U.htm# |title=USCG Statement - November 3, 1999 Hearing on Search and Rescue |access-date=2016-03-08 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161212140626/http://testimony.ost.dot.gov/test/pasttest/99test/991103_U.htm# |archive-date=2016-12-12 |url-status=dead}}</ref> The firefighting operation was led by ''Valiant'' and supported by several tugboats, but lack of crew training on the tugs hampered firefighting efforts. The fire on board ''Burmah Agate'' burned until January 8, 1980, and the ship was subsequently towed to Brownsville, Texas, for scrapping on February 1.<ref name=":0" />

=== Oil spill ===
Oil began escaping the hulk of the ''Burmah Agate'' immediately after the collision. Nearly half of the oil burned upon spilling and seasonal winds kept much of the remaining oil offshore, but large quantities of oil caused environmental damage. Large concentrations washed ashore at Galveston and San Jose island, while lighter quantities came ashore at Padre island and on the Bolivar Peninsula. Booms and skimmers were employed to protect beaches, while effected marshlands were not cleaned.{{ref|Govinfo|B}}<ref name=":1" /> Heavy winter seas and a constant rotation of ships used to contain the spill slowed the cleanup effort.<ref name=":1" />

An estimated {{convert|2.6|e6USgal|m3}} of oil were released into the environment, with another {{convert|7.8|e6USgal|m3}} consumed by the fire. A government report of the spill estimated that, of the oil spilled, 48 percent burned, 38 percent was recovered through lightering, 12 percent dispersed offshore, 1.7 percent was recovered by skimmers, and 0.5 percent directly impacted beaches.<ref name=":1" />  

==References==
===Notes===
:A.{{Note|A}}The oil carried by ''Burmah Agate'' was a mixture of blended and Nigerian crude.<ref name=":1" />
:B.{{Note|B}}It was feared that efforts to clean oil-fouled marshes may cause them more damage than the oil itself.<ref name=":1" />

===Citations===
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20090623220136/http://www.maritime-connector.com/ContentDetails/1479/gcgid/193/lang/English/Tanker-Incidents.wshtml Maritime Connector: Tanker Incidents]
*Collision of the Motor Tanker Burmah Agate and the Freighter Mimosa.

[[Category:Oil tankers]]

{{Sourceattribution|Burmah Agate}}