National Transportation Safety Board Marine Accident Brief
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has issued Marine Accident Brief regardingFire and Explosions On Board Towing Vessel Safety Runner and Kirby Barges 28182 and 28194.
The accident scene (Image Credit: USCG)
On April 24, 2013, at 2030 local time, the towing vessel Safety Runner docked on the Mobile River in Mobile, Alabama, alongside two Kirby barges that were having their tanks cleaned. Shortly thereafter, flammable vapors being vented from the barges open tank hatches entered the Safety Runners engine room and ignited. The fire spread from the towing vessel to the barges, resulting in explosions. Three persons sustained serious burn injuries. The total damage to the vessel and barges was estimated at $5.7 million.
Three people sustained serious burn injuries:
(1) The ORC PIC, who was standing on the deck of the Kirby 28182;
(2) a Safety Runner deckhand, who was standing on the starboard side of the Safety Runners main deck near the emergency shutdowns; and
(3) the radio technician from the Ricky J Leboeuf, who was standing on land immediately in front of the Safety Runner.
On shore, ORC personnel and the Safety Runner crew moved away from the burning tug and barges, aided the injured, and contacted emergency response agencies. Between 2030 and 2057, local fire and police departments received notifications and responded to the scene. At 2057, another explosion occurred, damaging nearby structures and first-responder vehicles. Emergency responders then evacuated all persons from neighboring buildings and vessels within a 1-mile radius. Coast Guard Sector Mobile closed the mouth of the Mobile River to vessel traffic and established a safety zone around the accident scene. The two Kirby barges burned for more than 6 hours and sustained several more explosions. Shortly after sunrise on the morning of April 25, 2013, the Mobile Fire Department declared the area safe for responders.
Investigators could not determine the source of ignition inside the Safety Runners engine room. This space, together with the vessels main deck area, was extensively fire-damaged. Kirby declared its two barges total losses. The damage amount for the towing vessel and two barges was estimated to be $5.7 million. The Ricky J Leboeuf and DM 976 were not damaged.
Investigators found evidence of inadequate management oversight by ORC, including employing a barge PIC without proper credentials, and not having an operations manual that specifically addressed tank cleaning operations at the ORC Facility. Instead, ORC used an operations manual intended only for mobile facilities, such as vacuum trucks and tankers. Further, in that manual, ORC had attached pages from the Oil Companies International Marine Forum (OCIMF) International Safety Guide for Oil Tankers and Terminals (ISGOTT) that described only what procedures ought to be contained in operations manuals, rather than writing its own procedures specific to the risks associated with tank-cleaning operations at the ORC Facility. The manual did not address hazards associated with motor vesselsfull of ignition sourcesdocking alongside barges during tank-cleaning operations.
| The National Transportation Safety Board determines that the probable cause of the fire and explosions involving towing vessel Safety Runner and Kirby barges 28182 and 28194 was the failure of the ORC Facility to isolate tank-cleaning operations from sources of ignition. Contributing to the accident was ORCs failure to provide its employees with tank-cleaning training and procedures that followed industry standards and government regulations for reducing the risk of fire during tank-cleaning operations. |
Further details may be found by reading the NTSB Marine Accident Brief
