NANTUCKET, Mass., USCG HH-3 overflies the wreck of the SS Argo Merchant swirl in a sea of foam before the tanker was sucked under. The tanker broke into two pieces Dec. 21, 1976, after running aground six days earlier on its way to Salem, Mass., with a load of 7.3 million gallons of heavy industrial fuel oil. The 644-foot, 18, 743-ton Liberian-flagged tanker ran aground Dec. 15 in international waters 28 miles southeast of Nantucket Island, causing a major spill. Helicopters from Coast Guard Air Station Cape Cod, Mass., lifted the 38 crewmembers to safety Dec. 15 and 16. Photo courtesy of Coast Guard Historian.