Beaching: An obsolete Russian freighter bearing gifts glides out of the night to end its days on the beach at Alang.

ALANG, India -- The last voyage of the Nikolai Pogodin, a Russian freighter plagued by debt and barnacles, ended in the hopeless hour before dawn on the beach at Plot No. 20.

The lights of the Pogodin glimmered out in the bay, seeming for a long time not to be moving -- but only because the ship was charging out of the dark night toward the beach at Alang. As it came closer, the outline of the hull became visible, set off by the white foam at the bow.

On the beach: The Russian cargo ship Nikolai Pogodin(left), beached that morning, lists slightly to port as the tide goes out in Alang. Other vessels are in varying states of demolition. (photo by Perry Thorsvik : Sun Staff)

Beaching a ship is a ticklish business. The current runs strong. Kenneth Pereira, the Alang pilot, once had a ship's wheel come off in his hands during a beaching. The shipbreaking plots are narrow, and the water offshore is littered with parts of vessels.

The throbbing of the Pogodin's engines reached the shore. And then the ship rose at the last moment. Its bow lifted toward men gathered on the beach, feeding a fire with scraps of rubber. In a single, easy motion, the ship came to a stop.

The Pogodin dropped anchor for the last time.

"It's a good ship," said Capt. Leonid Baturevich, "but it's 26 years old. That's too old. It's getting dangerous."

The ship was dark and now belonged to Chetan Tamboli, owner of Plot 20. He sent his men aboard, and news came back that, unbelievably, the Russians had left 150 bottles of gin and vodka on board. Tamboli and the others were ecstatic. Alang is in Gujarat, a dry state, yet the owners of the shipbreaking companies are a notoriously hard-drinking lot. This was like a gift from heaven.

Originally Published on 12/9/97