The world's 10 worst maritime disasters-in the last 20 years

The Philippines tops
the charts with the
MV Doña Paz/MT
Vector collision in
terms of number of
casualties in a single
maritime disaster. But
three of the top
maritime disasters in
the past two decades
happened in Indonesia.

1. MV Doña Paz
(Philippines, December
20, 1987)

Passenger vessel MV
Doña Paz collided with
MT Vector, an oil
tanker, along the
Tablas Strait,
between Mindoro and
Marinduque. The
collision ignited some 8
,800 barrels of
petroleum products
that Vector was
carrying at the time,
causing a fire that
rapidly engulfed the
tanker and the Doña
Paz. Subsequent
investigations into the
incident found that
Dona Paz exceeded its
passenger and cargo
limits and that the
Vector's boat license
had expired.
Casualties reached 4
,375.

2. MV Joola (Senegal,
September 26, 2002)

The disaster happened
within five minutes
after MV Joola sailed
to a sea of storm in
the coast of Gambia.
Various reasons for
the disaster were
cited, among them
overcrowding, and
negligence by
management as the
ship was not originally
designed for sea
faring. Death toll
totaled 1,863.

3. MV al-Salam
Boccaccio 98 (Red
Sea, February 3, 2006)

Faulty drainage pumps
and unpredictable
weather were some of
the reasons cited for
the sinking of MV al-
Salam Boccacio 98, a
Roll-on/Roll-off ferry,
into the depths of the
Red Sea. Survivors
and eye witnesses
said a fire started at
the storage area and,
as the ship turned, it
capsized and
eventually sank. 1,018
passengers died in the
disaster.

4. MV Bukoba (Lake
Victoria, Tanzania,
May 21, 1996)

The passenger
steamer MV Bukoba
sank in Lake Victoria
causing 894 casualties
while en route to
Mwanza, a city in
Tanzania. The
steamer was already
in bad shape before
the voyage. It was
also found out that
the steamer was
overcrowded.

5. MS Estonia (Baltic
Sea, September 28,
1994)

The locks on the bow
visor and bad weather
caused this cruise-
ferry's demise. A
total of 852 were
killed during the
tragedy.

6. KM Cahaya Bahari
(Indonesia, June 29,
2000)

A total of 550 deaths
were recorded after a
storm hit and
eventually capsized
Cahaya Bahari, an
Indonesian wooden-
hulled ship, off the
island of Sulawesi.
The ship was
overcrowded with
refugees fleeing from
the Maluku islands.

7. MV Nazreen 1
(Bangladesh, July 8,
2003)

The overcrowded MV
Nazreen I sank at the
confluence of the
Padma, Meghna, and
Dakana rivers,
considered one of the
most dangerous parts
of the river from July
to October. Casualties
were counted at 528
although there's no
recorded number of
passengers aboard.

8. Salem Express
(Egypt, December 15,
1991)

The Salem Express, a
roll-on/roll-off ferry
sank off Safaga in the
Red Sea as it was
crossing the
treacherous Hyndman
Reefs. Because of the
storm, the ship hit a
reef, causing the bow
visor to open,
creating a hole on the
starboard side. Water
penetrated the ship
which eventually sank
in 20 minutes. Deaths
were counted at 464.

9. MV Senopati
Nusantara (Indonesia,
December 30, 2006)

The Indonesian ferry
sank due to a violent
storm off Mandalika
Island in the Java Sea.
One survivor said that
the ship rolled over
before it submerged
to the depths. Deaths
were counted at 461.

10. KM Bismas Raya 2
(Indonesia, October
1999)

KM BIsmas Raya 2
caught fire while off
Merauke, Irian Jaya. It
eventually capsized
and caused the death
of 361 people.

Research by: Leilani
Chavez / abs-
cbnNEWS.com

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