The Bahamas Maritime Authority reports the grounding and subsequent sinking of a tug.
What happened
On 25 March 2024, the Bahamas-flagged tug Heroic I departed Grand Bahama for Abaco with a loaded barge in tow. On entering the channel at Abaco, the tow line parted. Despite recovery efforts by the crew, the barge, and eventually the tug, grounded on a reef within the boundary of Fowl Cays National Park. There was no reported oil pollution and the crew were safely rescued. Delays to salvage efforts mean that the barge and tug remain stranded at time of publication.
Probable cause
The tow line was shortened to navigate the narrow channel. With swells of approximately 3m, the line was subjected to shock loads that caused it to part, leading to the barge drifting and grounding on the reef. The crew attempted to recover the grounded barge using emergency tow arrangements, which also broke. The tug, facing difficulties in the adverse conditions, was pushed onto another section of the reef. The crew had means of checking the weather forecast prior to departure, but not while underway, unless they had cellular data reception. The tug’s operators did not provide guidance on operational weather limits, there was no towage plan, the tug’s bollard pull was unknown and not all of the towing arrangements were certificated.
Lessons learned
- Discretion of the master and stop work authority are only effective policies when crew are empowered to exercise them.
- Standard operating procedures deferring decision making to the master in emergency situations lose their effectiveness in absence of established contingency plans.
- The four stages of passage planning, appraisal, planning execution and monitoring are just as important for short domestic voyages as they are for international voyages.
- Plan continuation bias can impede a person’s ability to recognise that the planned action is no longer viable. It tends to get stronger the closer they are to reaching their destination. Countering it is difficult but having clearly defined limits and identified go/no go decision points may help.
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Source: Bahamas Maritime Authority
