SS Torrey Canyon

The Torrey Canyon

bvw photos ...

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The world's first major marine oil spill occured in March 1967 off the coast of south-west England.
The supertanker SS Torrey Canyon, fully laden with crude oil, was en route from Kuwait to the Welsh port of Milford Haven.

For whatever reason, instead of skirting the Isles of Scilly to the west - the normal route - the vessel was set on a course which took it between the Islands and the Cornish mainland and onto the rocks of the Seven Stones reef ...
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These photos were taken from helicopters based at the Royal Naval Air Station at Culdrose. The images are scans of black and white 6 x 4 inch prints produced at the base's photgraphic unit, which would seem to have been widely distributed.