American Star, Fuerteventura
Is the sun going down on the American Star?
The American Star ran aground in the Playa de Garcey in 1994, after a huge storm and broke almost exactly in half. The stern section was the first part of the ship to break up around 1996. The bow section remained proud and when we visited in September 2005 it was still relatively intact.
The coast on that side of Fuerteventura takes the brunt of the winter weather that hits the island, and in November 2005 Fuerteventura was hit by a tropical storm only just downgraded from hurricane status. The battering that this storm gave the American Star caused more debris from her to be washed ashore, and she began listing to port. A large part of the ship including the funnel also collapsed into the sea.
These photographs were taken during a particularly low tide, you can see that the bow section is tilting further and further over. When she was sitting upright the forces acting due to her weight were acting in the direction that the structure of the ship was designed to cope with. Now she is listing so badly the forces are acting in a way that will cause her to collapse more quickly.
Contact sunnyfuerteventura.com
© "sunnyfuerteventura.com 2004-2006"
Fuerteventura 
Fuerteventura 
Fuerteventura 
Fuerteventura