A helicopter prepares to lift, Tuesday, Feb. 9, 1999, one of three chains to be used, Wednesday, in securing the cargo ship New Carissa, which ran aground and is leaking fuel off Coos Bay, Ore.

The bow section of beached and broken freighter New Carissa points seaward next to the stern section as efforts to tow it out to sea continues in Coos Bay, Ore., Sunday, Feb. 28, 1999. The bow was moved approximately 35 feet today before becoming stuck on a sand bar. Towing efforts continue with each high tide.

A fireball erupts from the grounded freighter New Carissa as the fuel aboard the vessel is set afire late Thursday, Feb. 10, l999, off the Coos Bay, Ore., coast.

Flames shoot from the grounded freighter New Carissa as the fuel aboard the vessel is set afire late Thursday, Feb. 10, l999, off the Coos Bay, Ore., coast. The decision to scrap the ship and save Oregon's beaches from a disastrous spill of fuel oil was made after efforts to refloat her were abandoned.

A thick column of smoke from the burning New Carissa drifts across the sky Thursday evening, as seen looking southwest from a residential neighborhood in North Bend. The smoke is expected to drop a thin layer of soot along its path, last predicted for the north coast.

(shipburn3)Smoke billows skyward from the deck of the grounded freighter New Carissa after charges were exploded and the fuel set on fire late Thursday, Feb. 11, 1999, off the Coos Bay, Ore., coast. The ship was set on fire to save Oregon's beaches from a disastrous spill of fuel oil after efforts to refloat her failed.

A quarter is displayed for size comparison to a blob of fuel oil washed up on the beach.

The grounded freighter New Carissa is broken in half as smoke and fire continues to burn aboard the stricken vessel Friday, Feb. 12, 1999, off the Coos Bay, Ore., coast. Navy demolition experts set the fire late Thursday to burn the fuel on the ship. Later in the night, the ship broke in two.

The grounded freighter New Carissa is broken in half as smoke and fire continues to burn aboard the vessel Friday, Feb. 12, 1999, off the Coos Bay, Ore., coast. Navy demolition experts set the fire late Thursday to burn the fuel on the ship. Later in the night, the ship broke in two.

The bow of broken freighter New Carissa begins to pass its stern section as it is slowly towed out to sea in Coos Bay, Ore., Saturday, Feb. 27, 1999. The bow was moved slightly off the beach before the declining tide slowed towing. The renewed effort will begin on the next high tidelater tonight.

Oil from the grounded freighter New Carissa heads out to sea, foreground, as efforts to contain the spill continue Thursday, Feb. 11, 1999, off the Coos Bay, Ore., coast. The New Carissa went aground Feb. 4. Fizzled in their first attempt, demolitions experts came back with bigger explosives and napalm in an attempt to ignite the fuel from the mired cargo ship and save beaches from a disaster.

People on the beach are dwarfed by the broken bow section of freighter New Carissa in Coos Bay, Ore., Tuesday, Feb. 23, 1999. Crews are preparing the ship for an attempt to tow her out to sea at high tide early Wednesday.

Salvage workers on the bow section of the grounded freighter New Carissa as the ship continues to burn Friday, Feb. 12, 1999, off the Coos Bay, Ore., coast. The vessel was set on fire Thursday by a Navy demolition team and continues to burn. The ship split apart during the night.

A section of the freighter New Carissa burns Friday, Feb. 12, 1999 off the Coos Bay, Ore., coast after splitting from the aft section of the ship when a fire was set to burn off the fuel. The strategy appeared to be working with most of the fuel burning before it could reach the beach. "We did the right thing," said Coast Guard Chief Petty Officer Gene Maestas. "By burning the oil we prevented it from spilling into the ocean."

Powerful floodlights and the moon light up the beach Saturday night, Feb. 20, 1999, near the New Carissa in Coos Bay, Ore. Salvage crews began pumping fuel oil from the bow section of the freighter.

The broken bow of the grounded freighter New Carissa casts an eerie night light into the sky in this time exposure photo moments before it was towed over the surf and out to sea in Coos Bay, Ore., Monday, March 1, 1999. The bow is headed several hundred miles seaward where it will be scuttled in deep water.

A Coast Guard helicopter circles the broken stern of the freighter New Carissa near Coos Bay, Ore., Wednesday, Feb. 17, 1999. A tug was going to attempt towing the bow section of the ship off the beach and out to sea, but efforts to do so have been put off.

Waves crash over the broken stern section of the freighter New Carissa near Coos Bay, Ore., Wednesday, Feb. 17, 1999. A sea-going tug was going to attempt towing the bow section off the beach and out to sea, but efforts to do so have been postponed.

The tugboat Sea Victory approaches the surf near the beached New Carissa in a test run Wednesday, February 24, 1999. The plan is for the oceangoing tug to pull the ship's broken bow section off the beach and tow it to international waters, where it will be sunk.

Coast Guard Strike Team members haul a section of rope that will be used to tow the broken and beached bow section of freighter New Carissa in Coos Bay, Ore., Tuesday, Feb. 23, 1999. Efforts are being made, despite foul weather, to tow the bow at high tide early Wednesday.

The damaged aft part of the bow section of the freighter New Carissa is aground near Walport, Ore., Wednesday March 3, 1999. The vessel broke free from her tow about 50 miles out to sea and drifted back to the Oregon shore. The ship was towed from a beach near Coos Bay on Monday, but big seas and high winds caused the tow line to become separated from the vessel and her tug.

With the Alsea Bay Bridge in the background, the damaged bow section of the freighter New Carissa is aground near Walport, Ore., Wednesday, March 3, 1999. The vessel broke free from her tow about 50 miles out to sea and drifted back to the Oregon shore Wednesday. The ship was towed from a beach near Coos Bay on Monday, but big seas and high winds caused the tow line to become separated from the vessel and her tug.

Cleanup crews work on the beaches in Waldport, Ore., Thursday, March 4, 1999, as the beached and broken bow of the bulk freighter New Carissa sits in the background. Officials are working to tow the bow off Oregon beaches for a second time and out to sea for scuttling.

The broken bow of freighter New Carissa is accompanied by tugboat Natoma as she is towed out to sea in Waldport, Ore., Monday, March 8, 1999. The bow was pulled off the beach early in the day and will be taken out into deep waters for scuttling.

Thursday March 11, 1999, the New Carissa was sunk. A Navy destroyer hammered it with 400 pounds of explosivs then pounded the hull with 70 rounds from a 5 inch, Mark 45 destroyer gun and still she did not go down. It took a Mark 48 torpedo from the nuclear-powered submarine, USS Bremerton, before dropping two miles to the ocean floor Thursday afternoon.