TVIB News Tava Foret

The NTSB recently released reports from its investigations of two separate incidents involving towing vessels. What should be of interest to all is the indication in the probable cause of both that points to personnel training and effectiveness of the Safety Management System as either contributing or causal factors. Following are excerpts from the two separate reports:

M/V Peter F Gellatly
On August 1, 2015, at 2147 local time, the tank barge Double Skin 501 being pushed by the uninspected towing vessel Peter F Gellatly allided with International Matex Tank Terminals (IMTT) Bayonne Pier A in Bayonne, New Jersey, as the captain attempted to dock the tow at a nearby pier. Damage to the barge, pier, and an adjacent ship, the Isola Bianca, totaled an estimated $2.7 million. The allision also damaged pipelines on the pier, resulting in the discharge of 630 gallons of no. 6 fuel oil into the waterway.1 There were no injuries.

• Probable Cause: The National Transportation Safety Board determines that the probable cause of the allision of the Peter F Gellatly tow with IMTT Bayonne Pier A was the captain and the engineer’s poor communication, their inadequate assessment of the hazardous condition posed by the starboard engine control malfunction, and the captain’s decision to continue operations without ensuring that the malfunction had been adequately corrected. Contributing to the accident was the crew’s unfamiliarity with the provisions of the company’s safety management system that addressed actions in response to hazardous conditions.
• Click here to read the full report.

M/V Jaxon Aaron
About 1140 local time on August 13, 2016, a fire erupted in the engine room on board the uninspected towing vessel Jaxon Aaron while it was pushing a flotilla of 16 barges upbound on the Lower Mississippi River near mile marker (mm) 770, approximately 24 miles north of Memphis, Tennessee. The fire spread from the engine room into the accommodation area and wheelhouse, causing an estimated $10.2 million in damage to the interior spaces. All nine crewmembers evacuated the vessel safely to the barge flotilla. No pollution was reported.

• Probable Cause: The National Transportation Safety Board determines that the probable cause of the fire aboard the towing vessel Jaxon Aaron was the failure of the power assembly components on the port main diesel engine’s no. 15 cylinder. Contributing to the extent of the fire damage was the substantial use of combustible materials in the interior spaces and the chief engineer’s unfamiliarity with the firefighting equipment.
• Click here to read the full report.