Following an investigation that lasted nearly one month, marine scientists from National Taiwan University (NTU) yesterday confirmed that a newly discovered sunken wreck is in fact the missing Hualien No. 1 freighter that mysteriously disappeared three and half years ago.
However, the NTU scientists said that the cause of the accident remains uncertain and that the government should raise the ship to find out more.
On Feb. 28, 2000, the 16-year-old Hualien No.1 freighter left Hualien for Keelung to transport 5,300 tonnes of the kind of gravel used in construction. The next day, however, the ship had not arrived in the Keelung port and no one had heard from the vessel. The 21 people on board, including 14 Taiwanese and seven Burmese, disappeared without a trace.
The first piece of wreckage from the freighter, a life buoy, was discovered one year later on the coast near Chinshan, Taipei County.
Yesterday was the first time that NTU revealed their discovery of the wreck. According to Joe Wang (
At the end of last month, NTU marine scientist Yu Ho-Shing (俞何興) led a team to carry out the first sonar survey of the area. They discovered a wreck, the size of which was similar to Hualien No. 1, sitting upright on the ocean floor. The location of the wreck is 5.5km from Tsaoli at a depth of 82m.
Yu's observation was followed by three field investigations carried out by other scientists from the institute. By analysing the data they collected, the scientists concluded early this week that the wreck is in fact the Hualien No. 1.
"We suspect that the freighter's bow penetrated the gravel seabed first and then later the ship settled fully on the floor," Wang said.
Wang said one strange thing was the direction of the ship's bow, which now faces southwest. "It's the wrong direction for a ship heading for Keelung from eastern Taiwan," Wang said.
Song Gwo-shyh (
Scientists said records from Chunghwa Telecom show that sailors on board had made phone calls but that the signals were lost before the calls were connected.
Scientists yesterday said that the government should launch a comprehensive investigation into the sinking in order to find out what actually happened and improve the safety of sea navigation.
Families of the victims said that the government should recover the wreck and help them to find the bodies of their loved ones.
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