NTSB has issued an investigation report on an incident involving the crane aboard the Royal Engineer tow making contact with a terminal cargo crane.
The incident
On January 4, 2024, about 1620 native time, the towing vessel Royal Engineer was transiting the Cooper River close to North Charleston, South Carolina, whereas pushing the crane barge Stevens 1471 when the barge crane contacted a ship-to-shore crane on the North Charleston Terminal. There have been no accidents, and no air pollution was reported. Injury to the terminal’s crane was estimated to be over $4.5 million.
Evaluation
Whereas the towing vessel Royal Engineer was pushing the crane barge Stevens 1471 within the Cooper River, the tow transited beneath an STS crane on the North Charleston Terminal whereas maneuvering by way of a slim space between a docked containership and a dredging vessel as a result of the dredge’s floating discharge pipeline was blocking the remainder of the channel. The barge crane contacted the STS crane, leading to in depth harm to the STS crane.
The Royal Engineer mate was conscious of the dredging operations alongside the tow’s transit route. The day earlier than the contact, on January 3, he had transited the realm between the dredge and the North Charleston Terminal, however there was no containership berthed on the terminal. The mate instructed investigators that, on the day of the contact, he tried twice to contact the dredge crew early—first an hour after which 45 minutes earlier than he reached the dredge—to make passing preparations. Nonetheless, the mate couldn’t set up communications with the dredge crew till about quarter-hour earlier than the Royal Engineer tow reached the dredging space.
The mate instructed investigators that his unique intention was to request that the dredge “break the pipeline” in order that the tow may go to the east of the dredge. On this state of affairs, the tow would have proceeded down the center of the channel, the place there was loads of open water. It was common for the dredge to interrupt down the discharge pipeline to permit vessel site visitors to go. Nonetheless, the dredge captain knowledgeable the mate of his desire for the tow to go to the west of the dredge, they usually agreed the tow would proceed by way of the slim space between the dredge and the containership Celsius Nicosia.
Roughly quarter-hour handed between the time that the Royal Engineer mate and Brunswick dredge captain made passing preparations and the time of the contact. The mate didn’t notice the STS crane prolonged over the facet of the Celsius Nicosia and impeded the tow’s route till about one minute earlier than the contact. The mate’s concentrate on maneuvering the tow between two vessels in a confined space seemingly contributed to his delayed consciousness of how far the STS crane prolonged over the water.
By the point the mate observed the STS crane’s place, he was dedicated to continuing by way of the slim opening between two vessels, and the tow was touring at 5 knots with a following present. The mate requested the deckhand if it seemed like the highest of the crane barge’s mast would go beneath the STS crane growth, and the deckhand responded that he thought it will. Nonetheless, from the deckhand’s place on the deck of the barge, about 144 toes decrease than the best level of the crane mast, his angle of view would have precluded him from making an correct judgment.
Had the Royal Engineer mate been conscious of the STS crane growth extending past the containership when he was figuring out passing preparations, he seemingly would have realized the STS crane was a possible hazard and made a plan to keep away from it.
Possible trigger
The Nationwide Transportation Security Board determines that the possible reason for the contact of the crane barge Stevens 1471 with a North Charleston Terminal ship-to-shore crane was the towing vessel mate not figuring out that the ship-to-shore crane was an overhead hazard when he determined to maneuver the tow by way of a confined space between a dredge and a vessel conducting cargo operations.
Classes Realized
Figuring out that ship-to-shore cranes could also be an overhead hazard Ship-to-shore cranes, when conducting cargo operations on a vessel and within the lowered place, could lengthen significantly past the facet of the vessel and develop into a hazard to vessels with excessive air drafts transiting close by. Mariners ought to at all times contemplate their vessel and tow’s air draft when figuring out hazards to navigation.
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Supply: NTSB
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