Tragedy averted by ‘narrowest margin’ after Irish trawler collides with tanker

Tragedy was narrowly averted final yr when an Irish trawler collided with the facet of a big oil tanker within the Irish Sea about 90km off the coast of Waterford, an official investigation into the collision has discovered.

A report by the Marine Casualty Investigation Board discovered that the extent of vigilance on the 2 ships was “grossly insufficient” and was the “root trigger” of the incident.

The MCIB stated the collective failure of the 2 vessels to keep up an satisfactory lookout led to a lack of situational consciousness, which made a collision inevitable.

“The tragedy was solely averted by very slim margins,” noticed the MCIB.

The incident occurred at 10:22 p.m. on August 6, 2023, between the trawler Excel and the Singapore-registered oil tanker Petrel Pacific in British territorial waters.

The MCIB famous that the trawler may have handed the tanker’s bow if the Excel’s skipper had elevated his pace a couple of minute earlier.

In such circumstances, the MCIB stated it was unlikely that the trawler would have remained afloat if it had been struck by the tanker’s bow.

A Mayday alert was issued following the collision.

After figuring out that there had been no accidents or ingress of water, the trawler – whose bow was badly broken – returned to Dunmore East, County Waterford, whereas Petrel Pacific dumped the anchored off the Welsh coast in St Bride’s Bay for additional investigation.

The trawler, which is owned by McCarthy Fishing Restricted, was fishing with a crew of 4 in Smalls fishing grounds, whereas the tanker sailed from Milford Haven in Wales to Fort Lauderdale in the USA.

The report reveals that the officer of the watch on board the tanker was referred to as by the captain to care for some paperwork roughly 17 minutes earlier than the collision, however three minutes later a collision alarm on the ship’s navigation system had already been activated.

The information exhibits that the “closest level of strategy” – the shortest distance between the 2 ships if no change in course or pace – was estimated at simply 0.06 nautical miles shortly after.

Across the identical time, the trawler’s captain, who had first observed the tanker at 10 p.m., elevated the ship’s pace to start pulling within the nets.

The report stated his consideration was centered on that activity and he was “oblivious to the approaching threat of collision.”

He stated the captain had “severely erred” in what was a “probably deadly maneuver” by inserting the trawler on a converging course with the tanker.

The MCIB stated his conduct was “inexplicable” and “definitely doesn’t show that the captain was competent, no matter his certification.”

The report stated compliance with regulatory notices issued by the MCIB and cooperation with the investigation by Excel’s proprietor was “very restricted” and “non-existent” on the a part of its captain.

The proprietor of the trawler stated he wouldn’t take part within the investigation on account of pending litigation.

The MCIB stated the failure to supply competency certificates and different paperwork indicated potential non-compliance with rules regarding crew coaching and the {qualifications} of these engaged on the trawler.

Marine investigators stated the Excel captain’s actions “don’t replicate what could be anticipated on the most simple degree of somebody with the required coaching, expertise and certification.”

Concerning the Petrel Pacific, the MCIB reported {that a} sailor on the tanker’s bridge did not alert the officer of the watch to the assorted alarms that had been triggered to warn of a potential collision.

The officer of the watch returned to the bridge simply seconds earlier than the collision, however took no motion to keep away from it.

A recording from the ship’s bridge heard somebody say: “Mr. fishing boat, forward of you.”

The grasp replied: “The place does it come from? Oh [expletive]”.

The MCIB concluded that the tanker’s captain prioritized doc preparation over satisfactory lookout, whereas the trawler’s crew devoted their full consideration to fishing operations.

An 80-page report into the collision says Excel’s skipper triggered a collision by rising his pace when in any other case there might need been a close to miss.

The MCIB famous: “Though it is just potential to take a position on the potential penalties, the evaluation of comparable incidents constitutes convincing proof that the implications for the crew of the fishing vessel would have been extraordinarily critical, with probably deadly penalties. »

It additionally noticed that leaving an unqualified seafarer alone on the bridge of a loaded tanker at evening whereas it’s touring at full pace via established fishing zones was “opposite to all good nautical observe.” .

The report said that the officer of the watch left the bridge when there was already a threat of collision, which was “opposite to all rules of watchkeeping”.

The report highlights that the homeowners of the Petrel Pacific had applied quite a few proactive measures following the collision to stop a recurrence.

The MCIB has issued a security suggestion to the trawler proprietor that threat assessments and protected working procedures needs to be carried out for all operations on board.

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He stated they need to embrace a assessment of preparations to make sure satisfactory lookout could be maintained always throughout fishing operations.

The MCIB has said that every one crew, and particularly the captain, should maintain the related certificates of competency.

It additionally advisable that the Minister of Transport situation a maritime advisory to boost consciousness of the incident and the requirement to make sure that an satisfactory lookout is maintained always.

The minister was additionally requested to contemplate recalling an recommendation issued in April 2023 on the excessive significance of finishing up security and threat assessments, with the MCIB saying this recommendation had successfully been ignored by the proprietor and captain of the trawler Irish.