The National Transportation Safety Board has determined that an error in entering ballast water quantities into a stability program is the probable cause of the September 8, 2019 capsizing of the car carrier Golden Ray as it transited outbound through St. Simons Sound near Brunswick, Ga.
Less than 40 minutes after leaving port, the 656-foot-long vessel began to heel rapidly to port during a 68 degree turn to starboard. Despite attempts by the pilot and crew to counter the heel, the rate of turn to starboard increased, and the vessel reached a heel of 60 degrees to port in under a minute before it grounded outside of the channel.The NTSB
determined the probable cause of the capsizing was the chief officer’s error
entering ballast quantities into the stability calculation program, which led
to his incorrect determination of the vessel’s stability and resulted in
the Golden Ray having an insufficient righting arm to
counteract the forces developed during a turn while transiting outbound from
the Port of Brunswick through St. Simons Sound.
Contributing
to the accident was vessel
operator G-Marine Service Co. Ltd.’s lack of effective procedures in its safety management system
for verifying stability calculations.
The NTSB
concluded the Golden Ray did not meet international stability standards at
departure and possessed less stability than the chief officer calculated.
According
to the NTSB, after the vessel capsized, open watertight doors allowed flooding
into the vessel, which blocked the primary egress from the engine room, where
four crewmembers were trapped. Two watertight doors had been left open for
almost two hours before the accident. No one on the bridge ensured that the
doors were closed before departing the port.
“The
circumstances of this accident show that even when transiting in protected
waters, watertight integrity is critical to the safety of the vessel and its
crew,” the report said. “It is essential that the operator ensure that crews
verify that all watertight doors are closed in accordance with safety
management system procedures.”
As a
result of its investigation, the NTSB issued two safety recommendations to
G-Marine Service Co. Ltd.:
- Revise its safety management system to establish procedures
for verifying stability calculations and implement audit procedures to
ensure their vessels meet stability requirements before leaving the port;
and
- Revise its safety management system audit process to verify
crew adherence to the Arrival/Departure Checklist regarding the closure of
watertight doors.
The public
docket for the investigation contains more than 1,700 pages of factual
information, including interview transcripts, photographs and other
investigative materials and is available
online .
All 23
crewmembers and one pilot on board were rescued, including four engineering
crew who were trapped in the vessel for nearly 40 hours. Two crewmembers
sustained serious injuries. The Golden Ray sustained
significant damage due to fire, flooding and saltwater corrosion and was
declared a total loss estimated at $62.5 million. An estimated $142 million
worth of cargo, including more than 4,100 vehicles, was also lost.
https://www.ntsb.gov/investigations/AccidentReports/Reports/MAR2103.pdf
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