The Virginian-Pilot
©
Rough, unpredictable weather caused the grounding of a massive cargo barge during last November's nor'easter, but the mess might have been avoided if crews responsible for the vessel had acted faster, according to a Coast Guard investigation.
The 570-foot unmanned barge, named La Princesa, floated ashore in Sandbridge on Nov. 13, after it broke loose from the tugboat that was pulling it.
While the grounding caused no major damage on shore, it easily could have. The enormous barge, which was loaded with hazardous chemicals, drifted onto the beach just yards from the fishing pier at Little Island Park.
It took crews five days to dislodge it. During that time La Princesa became something of a tourist attraction, drawing hundreds of onlookers, some of whom began betting on when it might take out the pier.
The barge was en route from San Juan, Puerto Rico, to Pennsauken, N.J., when the nor'easter struck.
At the time, authorities said the two vessels separated because the cables connecting them snapped. The Coast Guard later ordered a full investigation.
It determined that while bad weather was the key factor in the grounding, fault also lies with the tug's captain, who should have notified the Coast Guard sooner that the boat was having difficulty maintaining its course.
Had the Coast Guard known there was trouble before the barge came loose, it would have dispatched other tugs to help or instructed crew members to vector their course to avoid "a direct battle with the winds and sea state."
"Prompt communication from the captain to the U.S. Coast Guard could have prevented the breakaway of La Princesa," the investigation report says.
It adds that the tug captain was issued a warning letter and that all crew members were given drug and
alcohol tests after the incident, though the results of those tests were redacted from a copy of the report released to The Virginian-Pilot on Monday. Crew members' names also were redacted.
A spokesman for Crowley Maritime Corp., which owned and operated the tug, said Monday that he couldn't comment on the report because Crowley hadn't seen it.
Already, though, the company has begun revisiting its practices for informing tug captains about weather conditions and about how they should respond, spokesman Mark Miller said.
"Communication more than anything is where we're looking to improve," he said. "But we also know that what we saw there in November - it was an anomaly, and no matter what, it would have been very hard to avoid."
Corinne Reilly, (757) 446-2949, corinne.reilly@pilotonline.com
Delicious
Digg
Reddit
Facebook
Twitter
Google
Yahoo
Again from the penut gallery
It is easy for an investigator who was sound asleep in his bed that night to make such a report. I was working that night and was dispatched by my company to go out there and try and rescue the barge. I can tell you the conditions that night were the worst I have ever seen in my career. It was survival conditions at best! If I even managed to chase down the barge I would not of been able to send anyone out on deck to hook up the cable to the barge. The coast guard should of been happy that no one lost there lives that night. The capt did the best he could and no amount of time would of made any difference. Other companys were called to action that night to help and all refused except for mine. Again the conditions were extreme, and leaving port in that kind of weather was suicidal! I have towed through huricanes that were not as rough as the Nov Storm. The coast guard un-offical job of investigating is to find fault with someone. They will never blame the weather or equipment. In there eyes it has, was, and always will be human fault. It is a shame they work that way, but it is the facts. Be carefull before you judge ANY Maritime incident.
if it was a Navy captain
If it was a Navy tug they would have relieved the craftmaster.
Thankfully this mishap ended
Thankfully this mishap ended up in no more than a break from the winter doldrums. I thought for sure this barge was going to claim the Little Island fishing pier. I guess God listens to the prayers of fisherman first.
The really fortunate part of this story is that this monster size barge didn't head for the Bay Bridge Tunnel with a tail wind and a moving tide behind it. It would have shut it down for God knows how long.