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The Norwegian-registered
vessel was the size of two football pitches and was carrying 2,862 luxury cars
and 77 containers from Zeebrugge in Belgium to Southampton. On
Saturday 14th December 2002, the ship collided with another boat, the container
vessel Kariba, whilst travelling in dense fog. No-one
was hurt in the collision but the Tricolor, along with its cargo, capsized and
sank into the English Channel 20 miles off the coast of France. It took 30 minutes
for the 190 metre ship to disappear into the sea. The Kariba managed to limp back
to port with a smashed hull.  | | Tricolor
13 by Michelle Atherton |
In
December 2002 the French authorities ordered the Tricolor to be removed from the
water as it was perceived to be a danger to shipping and the environment. Michelle
Atherton's exhibition, Missed the Boat, uses these events as a case study, investigating
both the incident and the events that followed. It also looks at the link between
accidents and commodity - in other words, why people are fascinated by disasters
of this size and scale. Her
work includes images of the damaged vessel which were gathered from news coverage,
interviews and press releases that covered the events as they unfolded. The
salvage operation to rescue the Tricolor from its watery grave was finally completed
in October 2004.
Michelle
Atherton: Missed the Boat
Millais
Gallery
19 February –
19 March 2005
Info: 023 8031 9916 | | 
