The Wreck’s Confessions

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The Confessions of the Sunken Ship A compelling article was once published in The Global Times, which read more or less like this: In front of the Brazilian shipping company Marítima de Navegação, there stands a stone that is 5 meters high and 2 meters wide, covered in dense inscriptions in Portuguese. The following are the words engraved on the stone: When the rescue ship sent by Brazil’s Marítima Transportes Marítimos company arrived at the site of the accident, the ship \"Atlântico\" had disappeared; 21 crew members were missing, and there was only one life raft on the sea, transmitting distress signals in Morse code at regular intervals. The rescuers stared at the calm sea in confusion, unable to understand what could have happened in such a favorable sailing condition to cause the sinking of this state-of-the-art ship. At that moment, someone noticed a sealed bottle tied under the radio. When the bottle was opened, there was a note inside with 21 different handwriting styles, which read as follows: Richard I Shui: On March 21st, I bought a table lamp at Oakland Port on my own, intending to use it for lighting while writing letters to my wife. 　　Second Officer Thurman: I saw Richard returning to the ship with a table lamp; he said that the base of the lamp was light, and that it shouldn’t fall over when the ship moved, but he didn’t interfere. 　　Third Officer Patty: The ship left port on the afternoon of March 21st. I noticed a problem with the life raft launcher, so I tied the life raft to a rack. 　　Davis II: During the departure inspection, it was found that the door closer in the crew area was damaged, so the door was secured with wire. 　　Second Engineer Antel: When I checked the fire-fighting equipment, I found that the fire hydrants in the crew area were rusty. I thought there were a few days left before arriving at the port, so I would replace them then. 　　Captain McKayem: At the time of departure, things were busy and I didn’t review the safety inspection reports from the deck crew and the engineering department. 　　Blacksmith Daniel: On the morning of March 23, the fire alarms in Richard and Suler’s rooms went off repeatedly. After Walter and I went in, we didn’t see any flames, so we concluded that the sensor had given a false alarm. We removed it and gave it to Whitman, asking for a replacement. 　　Blacksmith Walter: I am Walter. 　　Chief Engineer Whitman: I said I’m busy; I’ll give it to you in a moment. 　　Waiter Sconey: Go to Richard’s room at 1 p.m. on March 23 to find him; he wasn’t there, so I sat there for a while and turned on his desk lamp by accident. 　　Chief Engineer Kemp: At 1:30 p.m. on March 23, I took Suler and Robert on a safety inspection; I did not enter Richard and Suler’s rooms, saying, “Go check your own rooms.” 　　Su Le Yi Shui: I smiled, didn’t enter the room either, and followed Kempu. 　　Robert I: I didn’t go into the room either; I followed Suller. 　　Mechanical and Electrical Engineer Cohen: I noticed a trip at 2 p.m. on March 23; since this had happened before, I didn’t give it much thought, simply closed the valve, and did not investigate the cause. 　　Third engineer Masin: Feeling that the air quality was poor, he first called the kitchen to confirm there were no issues, and then had the cabin’s ventilation valves opened. 　　Chef Shi Ruo: When I answered Marcine’s call, I joked, What problems could we possibly have here? Haven’t you come to help us cook yet? Then he asked Ursula, “Is everything safe here?” ” 　　Second chef Ursula: I replied that I also felt the air quality was poor, but since I thought we were safe here, I continued cooking. 　　Mechanic Nupo: After receiving Masin’s call, I opened the ventilation valve. 　　Steward Desmond: At 2:15 p.m., I gathered everyone who wasn’t on duty in the kitchen to help cook for a dinner party that evening. 　　Doctor Morris: I’m not doing any house calls. 　　Electrician Holin: He ran into the restaurant while I was on duty at night. 　　Finally, words from Captain McKay: When the fire was discovered at 7:30 p.m., Richard and Suller’s rooms had already been consumed by flames; the situation was terrible. We were unable to control the fire, which kept getting worse until the entire ship was in flames. Each of us made a small mistake, but it led to a fatal error that resulted in the destruction of the ship and loss of lives. 　　After reading this final note, none of the rescuers said a word; there was a deathly silence on the sea, and it seemed as though they could clearly see the entire course of the accident. 　　Postscript: The warning methods employed by the Brazilian shipping company Marítima São Paulo were very effective; no maritime accidents occurred for that company in the following 40 years. 　　This is the confession of the sunken ship. Dear reader, after reading this story and letting out a deep sigh, what lessons have we learned? I can’t help but feel deep sorrow at this. It was simply because of a small mistake made by each individual that the ship Atlantic Circle disappeared, and with it, the precious lives of 21 crew members were lost. That tiny mistake led to a tragic outcome, at a great cost in blood.