Rogue waves

How high was the one that damaged the Santander Ferry and forced it to divert to Roscoff for emergency repairs a few months ago? Anyone know the exact position where they encountered it.

I assume us yachties would have been much closer inshore?
 
British ferry damaged by 50-foot wave

ROSCOFF, France, May 23 (UPI) -- Damage assessment was under way Tuesday on a British ferry that was slammed by a freak 50-foot wave and forced into a French port.

The 41,000-ton Pont-Aven had 1,150 passengers sailing from Plymouth to Santander in northern Spain in rough weather Sunday night when the wave struck in the Bay of Biscay, The Times of London reported.

Six people were injured by flying glass when cabin windows shattered, the BBC said.

The captain decided to sail into the French port of Roscoff for emergency repairs on the 2-year-old German-built ferry, which serves dinner to passengers on board.

Brittany Ferries offered the passengers a refund and said passengers could return to England on another ship or make their own way to Spain, The Times said.

Passenger Val Bostok said the weather had been rough for more than 24 hours when the ship was struck.

"We knew conditions were getting bad the night before when the magician had to cancel his act because his table kept sliding off the stage," she said
 
These pictures were nicked from another web site which is no more but they do give an insite into these waves.

It is relatively normal for a 100ft wave to run up the North sea every year or so when conditions are right and that is shown in the oil rig picture where the wave is touching the deck which is around 100 ft above sea level normally.

A TeeVee program researched this a year or so ago and yes these do exist..

SHips like the Derbyshire could well have sunk due to these 100 ft waves. I have seen what was probably a Tsunami which contrary to the experts and though in mid Pacific was sufficiently deep between crests for a 500 Ft ship to nose dive into the trough and ram into the back flank. Luckily the ship survived but I suspect this was one of those occurences mentioned by many seaman as a Black hole. This is what it would appear like at night.
It was actually a trough travelling at 60 plus MPH and no doubt capably of doing much damage.

This occurence was not used in the Tee Vee program as the program was solely about weather related waves which this was clearly not..It was a calm sea!!!!!!!

There used to be a picture on the web of a supply ship off New Foundland and totally reminisant of the poster picture for the film and DVD of Perfect Storm!!

John
 
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