By Mark Edward Nero
Mixed-products tanker Pine Galaxy, which was disabled when a fire in the main engine room occurred about 700 miles west of Cape Blanco, Oregon and left it without propulsion, arrived at the Port of San Francisco for repairs Aug. 27.
Commercial tugs towed the 10-year-old ship to safety into the port with an escort by the Coast Guard Cutter Pike and the crew of a Coast Guard Station San Francisco 45-foot response boat. The Pine Galaxy is currently undergoing repairs and inspection at a shipyard in San Francisco.
The ship experienced the fire in its machinery shop, located in the engine room, in mid-August while traveling from Los Angeles to South Korea.
The blaze resulted in the death of one crewmember.
The fire was extinguished using installed firefighting systems, however, the ship sustained damage to its generators, leaving the crew with minimal battery power and left the ship without power or propulsion.
There were no reports of damage to the Bahamian-flagged ship’s cargo tanks, fuel tanks or hull, however.
The Coast Guard, along with several federal, state and local agencies, formed a safety team with the ship’s owners to coordinate the ship’s safe arrival.
