NTSB Investigation: Towing vessel pilot never reported hitting bridge in Louisiana

The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has released a Marine Accident Brief about an accident that occurred in March 2019, involving the towing vessel Dixie Vandal, noting that the BNWAS alarm didn't prevent the fatigued pilot from falling asleep.

The National Transportation Safety Board issued Marine Accident Brief 20/37 Tuesday for its investigation of the Sept. 23, 2019, accident involving the tugboat G.M. McAllister and the NGL Energy Partners wharf on the Southern Branch of the Elizabeth River, near Chesapeake, Virginia.

NTSB issued an investigation report on the contact of tow William C with a Rock Island railroad bridge protection cell, on Des Plaines River, in January 2020. The investigation established that high speed prevented the pilot to correct the tow’s position after completing the transit through the previous bridge.

As my colleagues know, IMPA conducts a “safety campaign” in the fall every year. The 2022 safety survey report was released a few days ago. First of all, we would like to thank the pilots who participated in this survey from all over the world.

To monitor the vessel’s progress, the pilot had set up his portable pilotage unit (PPU). He had connected the rate-of-turn generator to the vessel’s pilot plug and had set a variable range marker on the radar with a radius of 0.5 nm.

Escada usada pelos práticos soltou durante entrada do Maersk Letícia em Itajaí. Saiba mais: http://nsctotal.com.br/
Crédito: Reprodução, Redes Sociais
Container ship MAERSK LETICIA, IMO 9526916, dwt 106043, capacity 7450 TEU, built 2011, flag HK, manager MAERSK LINE A/S.

On February 9th, 2023 Unites States Coast guard issued a safety alert (04-22-CH1) in which attention is drawn to the correct positioning of handhold stanchions onboard of ships.

Manoeuvring large ships at close quarters and on shallow water is one of the most difficult aspects of shiphandling because of the complex hydraulic interactions depending on the ships' speeds, on the water depth and on lateral restrictions like in canals. Training is conducted both on meeting and on overtaking ships in shallow waters. This video shows how overtaking in a canal can easily fail.
More information: http://www.portrevel.com/3781-shiphan...

Commencement of the Open Testing phase for Pilot-Guard.org, a platform designed to enhance the safety of maritime pilots through effective deficiency reporting and data exchange.