BIC Atlácatl (1838)
.png) A drawing of BIC Atlácatl.
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| History | |
|---|---|
 Creeperopolis
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| Name: | BV Amasio |
| Owner: | National Mining and Smelting Corporation |
| Ordered: | 1 January 1836 |
| Builder: | Díaz–Mori Shipbuilding |
| Cost: | 1 million pesos |
| Laid down: | 18 February 1836 |
| Launched: | 17 July 1838 |
| Completed: | 8 September 1838 |
| Acquired: | 4 October 1838 |
| In service: | 6 October 1838 |
| Homeport: | San Salvador del Norte |
| Fate: |
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 Creeperopolis
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| Name: | BIC Atlácatl |
| Namesake: | Atlácatl of Tucubaya |
| Owner: | Creeperian Navy |
| Acquired: | 19 March 1842 |
| In service: | 1 April 1842 |
| Renamed: | 1 April 1842 |
| Homeport: | Adolfosburgo |
| Fate: |
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| General characteristics | |
| Class and type: | Amasio-class |
| Type: | Sidewheel steamer |
| Tonnage: | 2,175 tons |
| Length: | 304 pi (278 ft) |
| Beam: | 43 pi 9 pl (40 ft) |
| Decks: | 3 |
| Boats & landing craft carried: |
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| Troops: | 500 max (after 1842) |
| Complement: | 30 sailors |
BIC Atlácatl, originally known as BV Amasio, was a Creeperian-built sidewheel steamship ordered by the National Mining and Smelting Corporation which entered service in 1838. The ship was requisitioned by the Creeperian Navy in 1842 to aid in the war effort in the First Senvarian Insurgency as a troop transport ship. The ship disappeared in the Bay of Atlántida on 12 September 1845 while it was transporting 505 soldiers from Adolfosburgo, Adolfosburgo, to San Nicolás, Helam. Prince Miguel Martínez Llachaumán, the younger brother of Emperor Adolfo III, was on board when it disappeared.
Contents
Career
With the National Mining and Smelting Corporation
The National Mining and Smelting Corporation was established in 1834 by Emperor Adolfo III to fulfill his manifesto Creeperian Investment into Natural Resources Gifted by God. On 1 January 1836, the corporation ordered a fleet of six ships to help the corporation improve its distribution of resources across the Empire. The ships were built by Díaz–Mori Shipbuilding at the Asambio-San Salvador Port. BV Amasio was the first ship in the class and was completed on 8 September 1838. The ship was acquired by the corporation on 4 October 1838 and entered service on 6 October 1838. The ship spent its service with the corporation moving raw materials from San Salvador del Norte to San Salvador, Adolfosburgo, Salvador, and La'Libertad.
On 1 March 1839, Creeperopolis annexed the Kingdom of Senvar. The annexation was not popular with the people of Senvar and they began an insurgency on 5 March 1839. The Creeperian Army needed more men to be supplied to help in the war effort against the Senvarians and received transport assistance from the Creeperian Navy.
On 19 March 1842, Amasio was requisitioned by the Creeperian Navy to transport soldiers to help the Creeperian Army defeat the Senvarians. It was renamed to BIC Atlácatl, after Atlácatl of Tucubaya, a significant and important military figure of the War of Creeperian Unification and entered service on 1 April 1842. The Creeperian Navy promised to return the ship to the corporation once the war had concluded. From 1842 to 1845, Atlácatl transported around 8,000 soldiers from various cities in Creeperopolis to San Nicolás, Helam, where the soldiers would then sent west to fight in Senvar.
Disappearance
On 10 September 1845, Atlácatl departed from port in Adolfosburgo and began traveling to San Nicolás. The ship was commanded by Commander Guillermo Herdón Rosales who was accompanied by 29 sailors as the ship's crew. The ship was transporting 505 soldiers and officers for a total of 535 occupants on board the ship. Among the officers was Prince Miguel Martínez Llachaumán, the younger brother of Emperor Adolfo III, who was going to take personal command of the soldiers in battle during the insurgency. Other notable officers on board were Brigadier Hernán Covarrubias Galán, who was one of the leading figures of the initial annexation, and Colonel Gregorio Dávalos Escalón, who successfully defeated a Senvarian army despite being outnumbered at the Battle of Honecker in 1841.
The ship was last spotted by the crew of BV Zorro on 12 September 1845 in the Bay of Atlántida. That same day, a large storm crossed the bay. The crew of Zorro reported almost capsizing during the storm as the rain, winds, and waves were extremely heavy and severely rocked the boat. Atlácatl failed to reach San Nicolás by early-October when it was expected to arrive and concerns were raised over the ship's whereabouts.
Searches
On 1 November 1845, the Creeperian Navy declared the ship missing and began searching the Bay of Atlántida for the ship or debris from the ship. After three months, the search was called off and the ship was declared sunk. The Creeperian Navy paid the National Mining and Smelting Corporation 1 million pesos in compensation in April 1846.
A second search commenced in 1860 for debris of the ship. After two months, nothing was found. In 1960, a third search was conducted, but again, no debris was found. In 2014, a fourth search was organized. Three weeks into the search, an upside down lifeboat was found at the bottom of the bay. No clear markings were found which would identify what ship it belonged to which is crucial as several ships have sunk in the bay, especially during the Creeperian Civil War. No other debris was found around the lifeboat and the search was called off after two more months of searching. The loss of Atlácatl is considered one of the most infamous ship disasters in Creeperian history.
