Significant Marine Incidents

Maritime News Marine Incidents
1

Was thinking about listing significant marine incidents that have been discussed here. Here’s a list generated by Chatgpt. I think the last six might belong on a list of more recent incidents. I might add the dive boat Conception for one.

  • RMS Titanic - Led to the SOLAS convention and lifeboat regulations.
  • SS Eastland - Highlighted stability issues from retrofitting ships.
  • SS Morro Castle - Sparked fire safety improvements on ships.
  • MV Dona Paz - Exposed severe overloading and poor safety practices.
  • SS Andrea Doria and MS Stockholm - Improved radar use and collision avoidance.
  • Herald of Free Enterprise - Resulted in stricter ferry safety regulations.
  • Exxon Valdez - Led to the Oil Pollution Act and double-hull requirements.
  • Estonia - Prompted better ferry design and evacuation procedures.
  • Costa Concordia - Enforced stricter muster drills and bridge management.
  • MV El Faro - Focused on weather routing and vessel inspection.
1 Like
2

True but such brief remark belittles the impact of this incident .
quote:
Lord Justice Sheen in his investigation into the loss of the Herald of Free Enterprise famously explained the management failures as “the disease of sloppiness”.

At its 16th Assembly in October 1989, IMO accepted resolution A.647(16), recommendations on Management for the Safe Operation of Ships & for Pollution Prevention
end quote

Also: the incident was also the impetus for the establishment of the UK Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) . The Secretary of State for Transport ordered a formal investigation into the capsizing of the Herald using powers granted under The Merchant Shipping Act 1970.
Cheers

3

I would add the steamship Sultana in 1865. A tragedy overshadowed by Lincolns assassination limiting the lessons that could have been learned sooner.

2 Likes
4

You have to kill lots to get a change to the industry, thats all stats taught me
Most deaths/oil spills engineered due to the result of saving money in an industry that couldnt and will never learn what 6 sigma means.
Its all about we do it this way because we always have.
( vessel/cargo insured for far more than the crew/passengers like aircraft)

2 Likes
5

The General Slocum Fire would be a good addition.

4 Likes
6

September 2021 marked 41 years since MV Derbyshire was lost at sea adding a black page to UK’s maritime history and redefining safety of bulk carriers. The vessel is the biggest British-registered merchant ship ever to have been lost at sea during peacetime and one of the few incidents where there was no distress call, no survivors, and no wreckage for many years

3 Likes
7

I agree, I’d take the Titanic off the list and add the Sultana.

8

Herald of Free Enterprise, Exxon Valdez, and Estonia were all cited as contributing to the need for the 1995 amendments to STCW.

3 Likes
9

H of FE, crew hours and dock built cheap so not good at low tide
Exxon Valdez, USCG agreed to short crew the vessel
Estonia, Class design flaw

1 Like
10

The Marine Electric brought about the CG’s rescue swimmer program and survival suit requirements.

7 Likes
11

SS Wilhelm Gustloff. 1945 Winter in the Baltic by torpedo

9400 lost souls

Not sure it qualifies as a safety case due to wartime conditions and torpedoes but it’s a pretty terrible disaster for lots of women and children.

The incident affecting ship construction the most is probably Morro Castle which prompted all manner of structural fire protection requirements that last until this day …

2 Likes
12

Not shipping, but still maritime:

2 Likes
13

The question is, can we learn more from the disasters, or from the close-calls that could have been disasters if not for the superior intervention of the crew?

In the Bering Sea fishing industry the fire and loss of life on the Galaxy is viewed as a significant marine incident. But few people remember the Pacific Glacier fire in 2008, because none of 103 crew were injured or killed.

The incident consisted of a complex fire fought at sea, lead by the captain and members of the crew, working with over 50 fishermen-firefighters from 16 other boats. The ops began with the successful and rapid evacuation of nearly a hundred people from the stricken vessel in skiffs. The fire fighting involved sophisticated techniques of crew rotation and air management that most fire fighting schools don’t teach, in a battle that lasted 12 hours.

Virtually no one talks about it today.

Disasters like the Galaxy fire and El Faro are serious marine incidents because we learn negative lessons from them: don’t do this or that. But we rarely study close-calls to serious marine incidents with positive lessons, like the Pacific Glacier fire.

9 Likes
14

The Pamir, Albatross, Marques, Bounty, and Pride of Baltimore were all sail training vessels that were lost in accidents. They all had a relatively high public profile and led to increased regulatory scrutiny of such operations and higher safety standards in the industry.

2 Likes
15

Loss of the USA Thresher was the impetus for SUBSAFE construction standards and testing. The smallest thing (brazing pressure lines iirc) can become catastrophic when it begins a cascade of problems.

Not exactly related to our industry, but a milestone in naval vessel construction.

4 Likes
17

This is a list of marine incidents I’ve studied or find interesting. Not all of them are significant in terms of their effect on the industry, but most of these have at least been discussed here.

The Blackwall (1867): Court case resulted in the “Blackwall Factors” (list of factors that help determine the size of a salvage award).

The Steamship Pennsylvania (1873): Resulted in the “Pennsylvania Rule” (a vessel that violates a rule designed to prevent collisions is assumed to be at fault in the event of an accident or casualty).

The Inchmaree (1885): Steamship explosion that resulted in the “Inchmaree Clause,” protecting against steam-power related losses.

SS Grandcamp (1947): Huge explosion while docked at port, caused by cargo of aluminum nitrate fertilizer (aka the Texas City Explosion). Led to new regulations that changed how volatile cargos can be stored and transported.

MS München (1972): Disappeared in rough North Sea weather. Most likely hit by a rogue wave.

Amoco Cadiz (1978): VLCC that ran aground off the coast of France, spilling thousands of tons of oil and causing environmental devastation. New laws governing salvage, marine pollution, and coastal navigation are just some of the wide-ranging effects of this disaster.

MV Summit Venture (1980): Bulk carrier that allided with the Sunshine Skyway Bridge due to the pilot navigating in low visibility weather. Part of the bridge collapsed and 35 people died.

MS Estonia (1994): Ferry sinking that killed ~850 people. Went down fast in the Baltic after taking on water in rough conditions. As noted by other people in this thread, this influenced the updated 1995 STCW.

MV Flare (1998): Bulk carrier that sank in the Gulf of St. Lawrence due to severe weather and a poorly maintained, old ship. It split apart and the stern sank in 30 minutes. The bow drifted for days before it finally sunk.

MV Rena (2011): Ran aground off the coast of New Zealand and split up. Resulting oil spill was a huge environmental disaster. (The wreck is now a thriving kelp forest!) Lack of adherence to navigational procedure, as well as fatigue and ineffective use of bridge equipment contributed.

Sincerity Ace (2019): Car carrier that caught fire in the Pacific Ocean. Crew abandoned ship with several casualties. The vessel was eventually abandoned and declared a loss.

Grande Costa d’Avorio (2023): Ro/ro container vessel fire in the Port of Newark that resulted in the deaths of two Newark firefighters. They were not equipped to handle the specific dangers and complexities of shipboard cargo hold fires, and lost their lives trying to fight it.

6 Likes
18

Learned in the USN over fifty years ago that most safety improvements are written in blood.

19

While not a major as most of the incidents listed, the Scandia+North Cape grounding+spill had a lot of regulatory repercussions for the US Towing industry.

3 Likes
20

I’d much rather study and emulate the crews that had their act together and performed exceptionally than focus on all the mistakes and failures in seafaring history. Maybe it’s also easier to pattern behavior off of things that worked.

Thinking of all those disasters tends to cultivate fear in my own mind, which is healthy to a degree, but can be counter productive if left unchecked. If we avoid thinking about them though, we are doomed to repeat the same mistakes.

Both are important, in their own way.

1 Like
21

The Piper Alpha disaster - the investigation report led to recommendations that resulted in the Offshore Safety Act of 1992.

1 Like