The National Transportation Safety Board has issued its report on a January 9, 2023, Lower Mississippi River incident that caused the barges in two separate tows to break free and collide.
The incident occurred at 1:52 a.m. near Fort Adams, Ms., when the towing vessel Big D was pushing 19 barges downbound on the Lower Mississippi River, and the towing vessel Carol McManus was pushing 42 barges upbound on the river.
The NTSB found that the failure of the pilot of one the vessels to incorrectly recall the passing arrangement agreed by the two vessels led to the tows colliding.
According to the Inland Navigation Rules, notes the NTSB, “when two vessels are meeting or crossing, each vessel shall signal its maneuvering intentions by using the vessel’s whistle or VHF radio.”
About 20 minutes before the 19-barge Big D tow and 42-barge Carol McManus tow met at the bend near Fort Adams, the pilots navigating the tows agreed over VHF radio to a port-to-port passage.
The Big D’s pilot maneuvered his downbound tow toward the right descending bank.
The Carol McManus pilot incorrectly recalled the arrangement, and also navigated his upbound tow toward the right descending bank.
The pilots, noticing the danger, attempted to maneuver to avoid the collision, but there was insufficient time to do so before the tows hit.
“When one mariner proposes an arrangement to another, the other mariner should repeat back the proposed passing arrangement to ensure both parties have a shared understanding of the arrangement,” the report said.
“Verbally repeating or ‘rehearsing’ a piece of information, such as a passing arrangement, serves two purposes: It ensures that both operators understand the arrangement, and it reinforces the storage and maintenance of passing arrangement information in each operator’s working memory until the information is required to be accurately recalled (when the vessels meet),” the NTSB report stated.
“Repeating back a proposed arrangement is critical when there is a long period of time between when passing arrangements are made and when the vessels meet.”
The repeat-back “also reinforces the agreed arrangement with each mariner” with the collision “further highlighting the significance of verbally rehearsing such arrangements to reinforce understanding and retention until required.”
Six barges in the Big D tow sustained damage as a result of the casualty, including indentations of deck and hull plating, distorted framing, and damage to deck machinery and piping systems.
Estimated costs to repair the damage to the Big D’s barges totaled $877,000.
A breach to an expansion tank and piping systems on barge FMT1052 resulted in the release of about 1,380 gallons of ethanol into the river.
Eight barges in the Carol McManus tow sustained damage during the collision, including indentation of deck and hull plating and damage to deck fittings and piping systems.
Estimated costs to repair damages totaled $479,977. There was no reported pollution from the barges damaged in the Carol McManus tow.
The pilot aboard Carol McManus pilot held a valid Coast-Guard-issued merchant mariner credential as a Master of Towing Vessels Upon Western Rivers.
He has more than 50 years’ experience working on towing vessels and about 30 years’ experience as a pilot or captain.
The pilot told the NTSB that he had been working on the Carol McManus for about a year and a half when the collision occurred.
The Big D ’s pilot held a valid Coast-Guard-issued merchant mariner credential as a Master of Towing Vessels Upon Great Lakes, Inland Waters, and Western Rivers.
He had about 27 years’ experience working on towing vessels and obtained his first merchant mariner credential as a pilot in 1999.
At the time of the casualty, the pilot had been aboard the Big D for 17 days.
Before joining the towboat, he had worked on a similar vessel, the 133-foot-long, 6,000-hp towboat John Grimsley. The results of post-casualty tests of alcohol and other drugs for the Big D pilot were negative.
The 133-foot-long Big D was built of welded steel in 2012 by Horizon Shipbuilding Inc. in Bayou La Batre, Al.
The vessel is owned by the St. Tammany Parish Development District and operated by Florida Marine Transporters (FMT).
The 163-foot-long, triple-screw Carol McManus, also constructed of welded steel, was built in 1969 by Gulfport Shipbuilding Corporation in Port Arthur, Tx., and is owned and operated by the Ingram Barge Company of Nashville, Tn.