Tōya Maru ( 洞爺丸 ) was a Japanese train ferry constructed by Japanese National Railways (JNR) which sank during Typhoon Marie , known locally as the Tōya Maru Typhoon, in the Tsugaru Strait between the Japanese islands of Hokkaidō and Honshū on September 26, 1954. JNR announced in September 1955 that 1,153 people aboard were killed in the accident. However, the exact number of fatalities remains unknown because some victims managed to obtain passage on the ship at the last minute, and others canceled their tickets just before the incident occurred.
20-432: Tōya Maru was launched on November 21, 1947. She was 118.7 m (389 ft) long and 15.85 m (52.0 ft) at her beam and she had a gross register tonnage of 3,898 grt (11,040 m). She could accommodate 1,128 passengers and was operated by a crew of 120. She covered the distance from Aomori to Hakodate in 4 hours and 30 minutes. As early as 1950, she was fitted with radar equipment, becoming one of
40-491: A mathematical formula. Gross tonnage is based on "the moulded volume of all enclosed spaces of the ship" whereas net tonnage is based on "the moulded volume of all cargo spaces of the ship". In addition, a ship's net tonnage is constrained to be no less than 30% of her gross tonnage. The gross tonnage calculation is defined in Regulation 3 of Annex 1 of The International Convention on Tonnage Measurement of Ships, 1969 . It
60-406: A migration period of 12 years to ensure that ships were given reasonable economic safeguards, since port and other dues are charged according to ship's tonnage. Since 18 July 1994 the gross and net tonnages, dimensionless indices calculated from the total moulded volume of the ship and its cargo spaces by mathematical formulae , have been the only official measures of the ship's tonnage. However,
80-459: A ship's manning regulations, safety rules, registration fees, and port dues, whereas the older gross register tonnage is a measure of the volume of only certain enclosed spaces. The International Convention on Tonnage Measurement of Ships, 1969 was adopted by IMO in 1969. The Convention mandated a transition from the former measurements of gross register tonnage (grt) and net register tonnage (nrt) to gross tonnage (GT) and net tonnage (NT). It
100-408: Is based on two variables, and is ultimately an increasing one-to-one function of ship volume: The value of the multiplier K increases logarithmically with the ship's total volume (in cubic metres) and is applied as an amplification factor in determining the gross tonnage value. K is calculated with a formula which uses the common or base-10 logarithm : Once V and K are known, gross tonnage
120-489: Is calculated using the formula, whereby GT is a function of V: which by substitution is: Thus, gross tonnage exhibits linearithmic growth with volume, increasing faster at larger volumes. The units of gross tonnage, which involve both cubic metres and log-metres, have no physical significance, but were rather chosen for historical convenience. Since gross tonnage is a bijective function of ship volume, it has an inverse function , namely ship volume from gross tonnage, but
140-708: Is not a measure of the ship's weight or displacement and should not be confused with terms such as deadweight tonnage or displacement . Gross register tonnage was defined by the Moorsom Commission in 1849. Gross and net register tonnages were replaced by gross tonnage and net tonnage , respectively, when the International Maritime Organization (IMO) adopted The International Convention on Tonnage Measurement of Ships on 23 June 1969. The new tonnage regulations entered into force for all new ships on 18 July 1982, but existing vessels were given
160-451: The U.S. Army's 1st Cavalry Division Artillery who were traveling from Hokkaidō as an advance party to set up a new camp ( Camp Younghans ) at Higashine, Yamagata , near Sendai . One soldier survived when he was swept through a porthole . Another, 2nd lieutenant George A. Vaillancourt, Battery C, 99th Field Artillery Battalion, 1st Cavalry Division, was posthumously awarded the Soldier's Medal ,
180-668: The first Japanese sea liners to be so equipped. She was used by the Emperor the month before she sank. She was also famous as the flagship of the Tsugaru Strait. Typhoon Marie , which had previously blown through Honshū , was in the Sea of Japan at 12:00 on September 26, 1954, heading northeast with wind speeds of more than 100 km/h (62mph). It was predicted to reach the Tsugaru Strait at around 17:00. At 11:00, Tōya Maru arrived at Hakodate after its first journey that day from Aomori . She
200-460: The gross and net register tonnages are still widely used in describing older ships. Gross Tonnage Gross tonnage ( GT , G.T. or gt ) is a nonlinear measure of a ship's overall internal volume. Gross tonnage is different from gross register tonnage . Neither gross tonnage nor gross register tonnage should be confused with measures of mass or weight such as deadweight tonnage or displacement . Gross tonnage, along with net tonnage ,
220-495: The highest non-combat medal at the time, for his courage during the disaster. The football field at Camp Younghans was dedicated to Vaillancourt on September 24, 1955. Four other ferries sank in the same typhoon, making a total loss of life of 1,430. The sinking of Tōya Maru was one of the major factors behind the construction of the Seikan Tunnel between Hokkaidō and Honshū. However, ferry traffic still continues to operate in
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#1732852062947240-442: The outskirts of Hakodate . At 22:26, Tōya Maru beached and an SOS call was made. However, the waves were so strong that the sea liner could no longer remain upright and, at around 22:43, Tōya Maru capsized and sank at sea several hundred meters off the shore of Hakodate. Of the 1,309 on board, only 150 people survived, while 1,159 (1,041 passengers, 73 crew and 41 others) died. Among those killed were 35 American soldiers from
260-427: The strait. 41°11′36″N 140°09′07″E / 41.1932°N 140.152°E / 41.1932; 140.152 Gross register tonnage Gross register tonnage ( GRT , grt , g.r.t. , gt ), or gross registered tonnage , is a ship's total internal volume expressed in "register tons", each of which is equal to 100 cubic feet (2.83 m ). Replaced by Gross Tonnage (GT), gross register tonnage uses
280-572: The total permanently enclosed capacity of the vessel as its basis for volume. Typically this is used for dockage fees, canal transit fees, and similar purposes where it is appropriate to charge based on the size of the entire vessel. Internationally, GRT may be abbreviated as BRT for the German " Bruttoregistertonne ". Net register tonnage subtracts the volume of spaces not available for carrying cargo, such as engine rooms, fuel tanks and crew quarters, from gross register tonnage. Gross register tonnage
300-549: The weather cleared up and the outlook improved. The captain, presuming that the typhoon had now passed as predicted, decided to proceed with the journey to Aomori. However, by this time the typhoon had only slowed down and was predicted to remain over the strait for an entire day. Atypically, the typhoon gained strength in the Sea of Japan . It was considered to have already become an extratropical cyclone when it reached Japan. At 18:39, Tōya Maru departed from Hakodate with approximately 1,300 passengers aboard. Shortly thereafter,
320-413: The wind picked up coming from a SSE direction. At 19:01, Tōya Maru lowered its anchor near Hakodate Port to wait for the weather to clear up again. However, due to high winds, the anchor did not hold and Tōya Maru was cast adrift. Water entered the engine room, due to the poor design of the vehicle decks, causing its steam engine to stop. The now uncontrollable sea liner ran aground onto Nanae Beach, on
340-485: Was defined by the International Convention on Tonnage Measurement of Ships, 1969 , adopted by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) in 1969, and came into force on 18 July 1982. These two measurements replaced gross register tonnage (GRT) and net register tonnage (NRT). Gross tonnage is calculated based on "the moulded volume of all enclosed spaces of the ship" and is used to determine things such as
360-527: Was originally scheduled to return at 14:40, to arrive at Aomori just before Typhoon Marie. However, due to the expected storm, another ferry— Dai 11 Seikan Maru , a somewhat poorer quality vessel— could not depart on her scheduled journey to Hakodate. Therefore, passengers and vehicles were transferred to Tōya Maru , delaying her departure. The captain of Tōya Maru decided to cancel its journey at 15:10. At 17:00, following heavy rainfall in Hakodate,
380-451: Was provided to allow ships time to adjust economically, since tonnage is the basis for satisfying manning regulations and safety rules. Tonnage is also the basis for calculating registration fees and port dues. One of the convention's goals was to ensure that the new calculated tonnages "did not differ too greatly" from the traditional gross and net register tonnages. Both GT and NT are obtained by measuring ship's volume and then applying
400-607: Was the first successful attempt to introduce a universal tonnage measurement system. Various methods were previously used to calculate merchant ship tonnage, but they differed significantly and one single international system was needed. Previous methods traced back to George Moorsom of Great Britain 's Board of Trade who devised one such method in 1854. The tonnage determination rules apply to all ships built on or after 18 July 1982. Ships built before that date were given 12 years to migrate from their existing gross register tonnage (GRT) to use of GT and NT. The phase-in period
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