It was a storm that prompted the captain of the “MV Dara” to steer the 5,000-ton cargo and passenger ship out of the port of Dubai on April 7, 1961, thus sailing towards the disaster in the Persian Gulf. Two weeks earlier, on March 23, the British India Steam Navigation Company ship had cast off from what was then Bombay (now Mumbai) with a total of 819 people on board. At that time, the “MV Dara” transported passengers, mail and cargo from India to various ports on the Persian Gulf. After several stops at ports such as Muscat, Dubai, Bahrain, Abadan and Basra, it arrived back in Dubai on April 7th.
Since there was no port in Dubai back then – a decade before the United Arab Emirates was formed – passengers and cargo were transported back and forth by barge for the final leg of their journey. When a storm blew up in the afternoon and the 120-meter-long “MV Dara” collided with a cargo ship that was weighing anchor, the captain decided to set sail to weather the storm. For around 80 passengers who actually wanted to leave the ship in Dubai, there was not even time to disembark. Also on the ship were relatives and friends saying goodbye to the passengers, cargo handlers and various shipping and immigration officials.
During the night the “MV Dara” anchored outside the city. The next morning, April 8, 1961, at around 4:40 a.m., shortly after the Dara had started her return voyage to Dubai, the disaster struck. A massive explosion ripped apart three of the ship’s decks. The ship’s purser, then 23, recalls being yanked from his bunk by the force of the blast: “It was dark. I just grabbed my shorts and a shirt and ran out. The deck was in total chaos. I could see a gaping hole from which fire was coming,” he was quoted as saying by the Arabic newspaper The National. He tried to help an officer put out the fire, but there was no water. The explosion had destroyed all onboard operating systems.
He had to watch helplessly as the passengers jumped into the raging sea in panic. Some, unaware that they had to hold on to their old, hard life jackets, broke their necks when they hit the water and floated motionless in the sea. In desperation, women even threw their babies into the water to save them from the flames. The fire, which also spread very quickly across the passenger decks due to the still prevailing strong winds, also destroyed several lifeboats. Other lifeboats capsized because they were launched overcrowded. Other boats would not even let themselves be put into the water.
The passengers who survived the accident were picked up by British, German, Japanese and Norwegian ships and a US destroyer. By 6:30 a.m., the burning ship had been evacuated. Three British Navy frigates and an American destroyer fought the fire on board. The burned-out wreck remained afloat for two more days. At around 9.20am on April 10, flooded with water from the fire hoses, the MV Dara capsized and sank while being towed ashore north of Dubai by the Glasgow salvage vessel Ocean Salvor.
238 men, women and children died in the accident, most of them from India and Pakistan. Dozens were taken to nearby hospitals with serious injuries including third-degree burns, lacerations and bruises. Many suffered from shock and exhaustion.
It remains unclear who was responsible for the tragedy. Despite extensive investigations, no one was arrested. In Britain, it was believed that the attack was the work of Omani rebels who had been driven out of the country by British troops in 1959. They had carried out a series of terrorist attacks, often using plastic-coated anti-tank mines. Royal Navy divers later found evidence on the wreck of an explosion caused by around ten kilograms of the type of explosive used in these weapons.
It has also been suggested that the bomb had been brought on board in a suitcase in Dubai – and that the person who placed it there may have been stranded on board by the storm, sealing its fate as well as the other passengers. Had the ship’s schedule not been disrupted, the timer would have detonated the bomb around the time the MV Dara was due to enter Muscat Harbour.
Now, the wreck, which lies off the town of Umm al Qaiwain, has become home to plenty of marine life and a popular destination for divers. It lies at a depth of around 20 meters in three main parts, with the middle part being shattered beyond recognition. The bow and stern, on the other hand, are still relatively intact. Due to the many fishermen who cast their nets along the coast, the wreck was almost completely covered by the netting. However, volunteer divers have made the effort to free the wreck in recent years. The city has now also installed a buoy to make it easier for diving tourists to find.
Quellen: “The National”, Divesitedirectory, “Gulfnews”, wrecksite.eu., Dubai Voluntary Diving Team
