V.A. Fogg
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T2 tanker vessel built in Alabama, beginning January 1944, and launched as S.S. Four Lakes. It was renamed V.A. Fogg in 1971.
On February 1, 1972, the ship sailed from Freeport, Texas to a point 50 miles off shore to clean its cargo tanks of remaining benzene residue, and then sail for Galveston to offload a cargo of xylene. The ship exploded during the cleaning operation, sending a column of smoke over 10,000 feet in height. A search found the ship lying in 100 feet of water in two sections. There were no survivors.
The Coast Guard investigation revealed a lack of proper training by the crew in venting and cleaning benzene, which can explode if residual fumes come in contact with an electrical charge; such a charge may have come from a "red devil" blower, a device used to ventilate spaces. Witnesses have seen red devil blowers lowered into the holds by the crew in the past, and one was recovered from the wreckage, in the hold and rigged to be used.
Within a year of her sinking, the Fogg was subject to the writings of Bermuda Triangle authors, some contending that no bodies were recovered except that of the captain, who was found sitting in his cabin still holding a coffee cup. The explanations were easily refuted by official United States Coast Guard records and photographs, as well as the recovery of several bodies.
Currently, the wreckage of the V.A. Fogg shares space with a number of sunken Liberty ships and barges in what has since been called the Freeport Liberty Ship Reef Site, an underwater park catering to scuba enthusiasts and fisherman.
Texas Parks and Wildlife (Ships to Reefs)[1]
United States Coast Guard report on the sinking: [2]
