BTO SUR remembers the crew of MV "Polesk"

Today marks 31 years since the tragic loss of MV "Polesk" of the Baltic Shipping Company and the deaths of its 29 crew members. On the day of remembrance, representatives of the Baltic Territorial Organization of the Seafarers' Union of Russia came to the Seraphimovskoye Cemetery in St. Petersburg and laid a wreath at the memorial to the dead seafarers. 

MV "Polesk" sank in an 11 points storm on the passage from South America to Africa in 1993. Of the 30 people who were on board, only one survived - a senior motorman Yury Altukhov. He outlived his comrades by only seven years. 

From the memories of the survived seafarer: "On September 11, we left the port of Buenos Aires. The vessel was fully loaded: bone meal and pipes were in the holds. General cargo - containers and structures - were on the deck. We crossed the Atlantic in the forties, and this is a choppy area. For a week, we were sailing rather quietly. The vessel performed very well and was steady. There were no signs of tragedy. Everything changed dramatically on September 16, when a storm began, intensifying with every minute. Around 9.30-10.00 p.m., the vessel suddenly began to rock sharply: to starboard - to port, to starboard - to port. Then it went to starboard and did not return to an even keel. The heel was about 30 degrees. You couldn't even stand on the deck". 

Many years have passed, but relatives, friends, and colleagues still come to the memorial to honor the memory of the seafarers. Every year, representatives of the Baltic Territorial Organization of the Seafarers' Union of Russia come to the grave site of the MV "Polesk" crew to lay flowers. 

The union's support is not limited to that: the memorial and adjacent territory are properly maintained. Besides, BTO SUR assisted the widow of Yury Altukhov to install a monument on the seafarer's grave at the Volkovskoye Cemetery in St. Petersburg. 

Photo: BTO SUR