Transport Malta reports of a safety investigation into the loss of propulsion and subsequent grounding of the Maltese-registered ro-ro cargo vessel Mazarine on Wolf Rock, off Land’s End, UK on 10 July 2023.
What happened?
At about 1040, on 10 July 2023, the Maltese-registered, ro-ro cargo vessel, Mazarine ran aground on Wolf Rock, off Land’s End, UK. Mazarine sustained structural damages in the underwater section of the hull. In addition to the hull perforations, several deformations were observed, mostly on the port side. Mazarine was enroute from Cork, Ireland, to Zeebrugge, Belgium.
Mazarine ran aground following the failure of an elbow fitted on the vessel’s main engine lubricating oil system, leading to the loss of a significant amount of lubricating oil and a drop in the main engine lubrication oil pressure.
Immediate Cause of the Accident
- It was not excluded that the initial cause of the pipe elbow failure was fatigue due to alternating stresses, possibly caused by high levels of vibrations and/or bending forces resulting from the degradation of the flexible rubber bellow.
- The loss of the main engine LO pressure was the cause of loss of propulsion, which eventually led to the grounding, after the vessel lost headway
Recommendations
In view of the conclusions reached and taking into consideration the safety actions taken during the safety investigation,
- Anglo-Eastern Ship Management (NL) BV is recommended to investigate the level of vibration in the LO pipe elbow and take corrective action if the findings so warrants.
- MAK is recommended to issue a service bulletin to engine operators to carry out non-destructive testing (NDT) on similar pipes to check for cracks.
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Source: Transport Malta
