Initial report A loaded tanker (14m draft) entered harbour and approached its berth. The bridge and mooring stations were fully crewed. The pilot embarked and a comprehensive master-pilot exchange took place. All equipment was reported in good condition and working. Two tugs were made fast – one at the bow and one at the stern. […]
Initial report As a laden LPG tanker prepared to depart a berth with a pilot embarked, smoke was detected in the Bosun’s store in which the motors for the hydraulic winches were housed. The motors were immediately stopped using the remote shut-off controls and the Master immediately suspended the unberthing operation to allow the alarm […]
Initial report A lumber carrier embarked a pilot as it approached a loading berth where a tug waited to assist. The pilot requested that the vessel secure the tug’s line to the mooring bitts on the forward deck. After this was achieved, and as the tug came under the line to push up, the tug […]
Initial report As a vessel approached a harbour at night in good visibility, an OOW detected a second vessel 9nm on their port side which was also heading for the port. Radar plotting showed that the second vessel would cross their bow at only 0.3nm – a close quarters situation in which the second vessel […]
Initial Report A time-constrained handover took place on board a tanker at anchor the evening prior to a planned canal transit. The off-signing crew of 21, who had been on board for 11 months, were relieved by a complement of 14; the remainder scheduled to join at the next port. Over the following weeks the […]
Initial Report A cargo vessel went to anchor and commenced pumping out ballast water from No1C Water Ballast Tank (WBT) to adjust its trim before a canal transit the following day. Shortly before pumping was completed, the bilge alarm for cargo hold No. 5 WBT activated. The Chief Officer instructed an ordinary seaman to take […]
Initial Report As a container ship was conducting outbound pilotage, the bridge team noticed a delay in response of the steering gear. At the same time, they noticed an alarm indicating “EMERGENCY – XX, SERVO LOOP”. The steering gear was in manual mode operated by Follow-Up (FU) No. 1 and No. 2 system control units. […]
Initial report “Our work levels continue to be high regardless of the awful impact of COVID and this is further increased by a lack of manning. Some vessels are non-operational due to a variety of reasons causing additional workload on the operational tugs and the crews that man them.” The reporter stated that the fatigue […]
Initial report During an annual lifeboat safety inspection it was discovered that the on-load cable release could not easily be moved, and the release lever required extreme force to operate. The forward hook cable release also did not operate properly. A replacement cable release arrangement was procured locally, and repeated tests were conducted to confirm […]
The following three short reports all concern failures to comply with the pilot ladder regulations. Initial Report (1) Trapdoor type combination, accommodation ladder platform less than five metres above the sea. The Pilot told the Master that in moderate sea and swell conditions access would not have been possible due to the risk of the pilot […]