Minor injuries…USCG investigating.
Hmm… at least one prop is still turning in forward after it strikes the pier - and no horn signals. It could be a mechanical/electronic engine control problem, or perhaps a lone captain suffered some sort of heath issue?
My thoughts exactly. Remember the Long Island ferry?
Adventure Hornblower in San Diego, 2016. mechanical issue.
I remember the Staten Island Ferry disaster. Is that what you’re referring to?
As an aside. You would probably get your nose flattened if you ever told a Staten Island resident they live on Long Island. Ha
That’d be the one. Excuse me, it’s been a long time.
Every year when I take my physical I’m reminded about the ferry incident.
https://www.ntsb.gov/investigations/AccidentReports/Pages/MAB1729.aspx
Probable Cause
The National Transportation Safety Board determines that the probable cause of the allision of the Adventure Hornblower with the Navy Pier and the downtown San Diego seawall was a failure of the port transmission to disengage from the forward propulsion position due to the operating company’s lack of adherence to the transmission manufacturer’s recommended periodic maintenance schedule and the lack of routine maintenance and upkeep of the propulsion system’s equipment. Contributing to the accident was the lack of instrumentation to provide positive indication of thrust direction or an alarm to indicate the propulsion control system was not responding properly to the captain’s commands.
I never understood why mates always haul ass when approaching the pier, then slam in reverse. They could just ease off the go-juice further out and drift in. Perhaps they are just ignorant to the fact that it is possible that the brakes won’t work when they slam it in reverse? Maybe they need to spend a bit more time with the engineers----then they wouldn’t have such blind faith in their equipment!
I’ll see your Adventure Hornblower and raise you one Bright Field.
Sure it wasn’t this one?:
Yes…that’s the story. MS San Francisco sailing from Larkspur to SF.
I thought we were just referencing maintenance related maneuver fails. I’m pretty sure it wasn’t the Bright Field, anyway
The average age in the wheelhouse of the Staten Island ferry is likely higher then on these small passengers ferries. Makes mechanical rather than medical more likely.
The vision I always had in my brain, as the vessel I was conning was approaching the pier, was that of John Kennedy in the movie PT-109, as he was racing to get to the fuel dock first. The boat couldn’t “grab” the backing bell, and collided [allided] with the dock.
Too bad not enough others have seen the movie!!