Casualty News – Professional Mariner

Inexperienced pilot conning towboat hits dike in notorious high-current area near Louisville

A towing vessel pushing more than a dozen barges in an area of the Ohio River near Louisville, Ky., where numerous vessels have been involved in casualties, struck a dike and caused more than a million dollars in damage. On March 8, 2024, the 138-foot-long, twin-screw, 4,600-hp Amber Brittany was pushing 15 loaded coal barges when it began a turn to port around mile 607 of…

Tow mate unaware of protruding cargo crane in crane barge collision: NTSB

Contact between a barge crane and a ship-to-shore (STS) crane that caused “extensive damage” to the latter outside Charleston, S.C., in January 2024 was the likely result of a towing vessel’s decision to navigate tight quarters, and lack of awareness about the STS crane extending into its path, according to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). The 61-foot-long tow vessel…

‘Bank effect’ pulls tanker into pier that was struck two years prior

A pier at Joint Base Charleston’s Naval Weapons Station in South Carolina sustained damage after a tanker pilot navigated too close to a riverbank, exposing the vessel to bank effect. The 604-foot-long tanker Hafnia Amessi was transiting outbound on the Cooper River when the incident occurred on Jan. 14, 2024, at 1019 local time. Damage to the vessel and pier…

Debris in lube oil cited in engine fire that burned crewmember in Maine

A crewmember suffered extensive burns after an auxiliary engine aboard a small cruise ship experienced a catastrophic failure and then caught fire. The fire started at about 0710 on Oct. 18, 2023, soon after the Bahamas-flagged Ocean Navigator docked in Portland, Maine. The ship had 128 passengers aboard, all of whom escaped unharmed. The ship’s motorman was the lone injury…

Coast Guard Findings of Concern: Several factors identified in overheating dousing units

The U.S. Coast Guard released a notice in late March expressing concern over diesel exhaust fluid (DEF) systems on Tier 4 engines, which are increasingly required by federal law. The Coast Guard’s “findings of concern” noted a towing vessel based in Long Beach, Calif., which had its DEF module components replaced six times due to recurring overheating issues. The vessel’s…

MSC Baltic III still aground with no apparent pollution and no option to refloat

On Feb. 15, a 680-foot cargo ship en route from Montreal to Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, issued a mayday. MSC Baltic III was in the throes of a blizzard about 12 nautical miles outside the entrance to Bay of Islands, Newfoundland and Labrador, when the crew reported a loss of power. “Weather and sea conditions in the area [were] unfavorable and the vessel was…

2 perish in engine-room fire

Two crewmembers died when they were unable to escape a fire that broke out in the engine room of a cargo vessel after an incorrect valve was installed in a pipe to a diesel oil tank. The fire started in the engine room of the 598-foot-long Panamanian-flagged Stride during fueling operations at the Barbours Cut Marine Terminal in LaPorte, Texas.…

SAFETY ALERT: Donning of Viking PS2006 Immersion Suits

The U.S. Coast Guard issued a Safety Alert in March to address instances where mariners on multiple vessels were unable to properly don three different sizes of Viking PS2006 immersion suits. The U.S. Coast Guard said the design of the hood’s fabric may prevent the zipper from being completely zipped, thus allowing water into the suit when it is donned.…

Tanker hits uncharted obstruction in remote Arctic waters, tears hull plates

A ship traveling in Arctic waters struck an uncharted submerged object and sustained a hull breach beneath the waterline in 2022. The casualty highlights the difficulties of navigating in remote waters, and led Canadian officials to remind mariners that even charted and surveyed waters may not reflect actual seafloor conditions. On Oct. 18, 2022, the approximately 475-foot oil and chemical tanker…

Degraded state of dock cited in collapse after barge bump on Mississippi River

About 150 feet of dock collapsed into the lower Mississippi River in 2023 after a crude oil barge towed by the vessel Ovide J made contact during a docking at the Chalmette Refinery in Louisiana, with a National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) report blaming the collapse on neglected pier upkeep. No pollution or casualties were reported in the incident, which…