The American Club provides lessons learned from an incident where a ship hit a dock, damaging its hull.
The incident
A bridge team consisting of a pilot, the Master, the 2nd Mate, and a helmsman were reducing speed as they approached a berth. The Master-pilot exchange had included a discussion about the general maneuvering characteristics of the vessel and the intended approach to the dock.
They also discussed weather conditions including the wind, but it was a quick discussion since the weather was very good overall with clear skies and moderate temperatures, and the tide would be slack when the vessel made its approach to the dock.
The wind was steady at 15 kts with gusts to 20 kts onto the dock. The 2nd Mate was logging maneuvers from the bridge but was not paying attention to the wind speed or direction.
The Master was on the bridge wing with the pilot. He was fully aware of the wind, but assumed the pilot was also taking it into account. The Master sensed the vessel was too close to the dock for its speed and finally said something to the pilot.
The pilot immediately ordered both tugs to full power to slow the vessel and turn the bow, but it was too late. When the vessel contacted the dock, the hull was dented and ripped open. The fender system was also slightly damaged.
The pilot later indicated that he had not expected the wind to have such a large effect on the vessel and wished the Master would have told him that the vessel was so susceptible to the wind.
Lessons learned
- What constitutes a good Master-pilot exchange?
- Should the effect of the wind have been discussed by the Master and pilot?
- Was this incident a “bridge resource management” failure?
- Could the 2nd Mate have done something differently?
