During berthing operation, pier was severely damaged by large oil tanker, seemingly tanker, get’s partially damage.
Incident
A large oil tanker reached the port to transfer the oil. During berthing operation, control of ship controllable pitch propeller (CPP) was transferred from bridge to engine room. Unknown to anyone, the engine room pitch lever was not aligned with bridge lever, which was at zero. The engine room pitch lever was not at zero pitch. When control was accepted in engine room, the propeller pitch move to ahead position and vessel began to move forward. The drifting of ship damaged the pier. Ship is also get partially damaged by accident.
Investigation
During investigation, it is found that person in-charge of ship didn’t follow the proper procedure for berthing operation. The following action have contributed to the accident:
- Bridge officer didn’t inform the engine room before transferring the control of CPP from wheelhouse to engine room.
- Engine room officer didn’t put the CPP lever at zero position if pitch of propeller is not changed from engine room.
Lesson learned
- When transferring CPP pitch control from the bridge to the engine room, best practice is to call beforehand and confirm pitch to zero.
- Keep your situational awareness at maximum and watch for any unexpected ship movements.
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