Casualty News – Page 408 – Professional Mariner

01 Mar

Life-raft canister falling from ship kills worker on gangway

Professional Mariner StaffCasualty News

A shore-based contractor died after being struck by a life-raft canister that was accidentally released from its cradle aboard a containership. The canister fell from a cradle on the port side of President Polk. The canister was one of two that were being returned to service on President Polk. They were dropped 50 feet to the dock at the Port…

01 Mar

Interstate bridge struck by barge collapses, killing 14 people

Professional Mariner StaffCasualty News

Fourteen motorists were killed in May when the 99-foot-long towboat Robert Y. Love, pushing two empty 298-foot-long barges on the Arkansas River, veered off course and struck the Interstate 40 bridge in Webbers Falls, Okla. A section of roadway rests on the barge that knocked out the supports of the I-40 bridge across the Arkansas River. The piers that collapsed…

01 Mar

‘Super-rust’ in Castor leads to calls for more stringent inspections

Professional Mariner StaffCasualty News, Maritime News

The plating of the oil tanker Castor corroded up to seven times faster than normal, causing massive cracks across its deck that put the ship at risk of explosion or a hull rupture, the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) has determined. The cracking in the deck of Castor, a 600-foot tanker, sent an alarm through the industry. The rapid corrosion…

01 Mar

Three offshore oil vessels sink within three days off Louisiana

Professional Mariner StaffCasualty News

Three offshore oil vessels sank in the Gulf of Mexico in as many days in May. The Coast Guard is investigating the string of sinkings that occurred May 8 to May 10 off the Louisiana coast. In two of the incidents, vessels struck the sides of offshore platforms during routine operations. There were no injuries or deaths in any of…

01 Mar

Tugboat rolls on its side after striking tanker

Professional Mariner StaffCasualty News

A tugboat collided with an oil tanker in January and rolled on its side before righting itself in stormy seas off of Washington. Two crewmen of the tugboat Sea King suffered minor injuries, but the evidence suggests the accident could have been much worse. When the tug rolled, its crewmembers were tossed about as water poured through the topside hatches…

01 Mar

Two killed in explosion of gasoline barge in New York Harbor

Professional Mariner StaffCasualty News

Two crewmembers on Bouchard Transportation Co.'s barge B125 were killed when the barge exploded on Feb. 21 while unloading gasoline at an ExxonMobil storage facility on Staten Island, N.Y. A Coast Guard patrol boat maintains a security zone as the New York City fireboat McKean pours cooling water on Bouchard B35 after a nearby barge caught fire while unloading gasoline.…

01 Mar

Deviation from float plan hurt effort to save Coast Guardsmen

Professional Mariner StaffCasualty News

Deviation from a filed float plan and lack of proper equipment and clothing contributed to the deaths of two crewmembers of a Coast Guard patrol boat that capsized in Lake Ontario in March 2001, according to a Coast Guard report. Four Coast Guardsmen were on patrol in a 21-foot foam-collar boat when they encountered steep waves on the lake. The…

01 Mar

Pilot error, hydraulic effect cited in collision near Tampa Bay bridge

Professional Mariner StaffCasualty News

Pilot error and hydraulic effect led two bulk carriers to collide near the Sunshine Skyway Bridge in Florida on Oct. 24, 2002. Bernardo Quintana's port lifeboat shows the effects of the impact. Image Credit: US Coast Guard Antilles III, a 378-foot ship, was attempting to pass the 753-foot Bernardo Quintana as the two vessels were navigating an 18Â° bend…

01 Mar

Welding in cargo hold sets fire in containership

Professional Mariner StaffCasualty News

Heat from a welding torch being used for repairs inside the main cargo hold of Ara J caused an explosion and fire aboard the 485-foot containership as it lay docked in Jacksonville, Fla., according to a U.S. Coast Guard investigator. A welder was standing on a container that held Styrofoam packaging material when the container exploded at about 1450 on…

01 Mar

Bridge’s design fends off severe damage from tanker

Professional Mariner StaffCasualty News

The recent collision between a 685-foot oil tanker and a bridge in Portland, Maine, illustrates the importance of bridge design in minimizing damage and injuries. The fender system of the Casco Bay Bridge cost about $7 million, or about 5 percent of the total cost of the bridge. The system sustained about $1 million in damages when struck by a…