The NTSB has actually released its record on a May 23, 2019, case in which 2 crammed barges, the MTC 7256 as well as LTD 11140, struck theWebbers Falls Dam The barges had actually escaped the previous day from a short lived location on the Grand River in Muskogee, Okla., throughout historical flooding waters as well as high river current. The 2 barges were overall useful losses. No air pollution was reported. Total problems surpassed $4.7 million, consisting of the quantity invested to eliminate the barges as well as fix the dam ($ 3,956,249).
POSSIBLE REASON
The National Transportation Safety Board established that the potential source of the barge breakaway as well as call with the Webbers Falls Dam was the pressure of the river existing acting upon the tied vessels at the Grand River short lived location, which surpassed the ability of the mooring cables, as a result of the severe increase as well as circulation of water in the Grand River as the Fort Gibson Dam launched significant quantities of water in a brief amount of time.
THE REMAINDER OF THE TALE
As constantly with these records, the bare bones recap does not also start to inform the tale of what the complete record discloses to have actually been a greater than tough, greater than three-week lengthy trip.
The barges had actually started their trip on April 30, 2019, when the Southern Towing Company hauling vessel Dennis Collins left with them from the Tulsa Port of Catoosa, Okla., at Mile 442 on theVerdigris River From April 30 to May 21, extremely hefty rains over of 15 inches dropped in southerly Kansas as well as north Oklahoma saturating dirt as well as causing significant as well as record flooding for lots of rivers. While the Muskogee, Okla., location, where the casualty happened, had a reduced rains, the location still experienced serious flooding as the Upper Arkansas, Verdigris, as well as Neosho river containers, which combine right into the Arkansas River in Muskogee, all got hefty rains.
The Dennis Collins captain was worried by the river’s high water, so he pressed the tow right into the financial institution at Mile 423 on theVerdigris River He remained upriver awaiting the river problems to boost, however doing not have “access to water, fuel [including fuel for the barge cargo tank refrigeration system, powered by diesel engines and], groceries,” the captain as well as the vessel’s port captain accepted relocate the vessel to Muskogee on May 13.
At the moment, the river in Muskogee was near flooding phase as well as had a present of
3 knots. Using coast cables, the Dennis Collins as well as its 2 barges tied in the barge short lived location on the left coming down financial institution at Mile 394 of the Grand River, where it satisfied the Arkansas River.
Early in the early morning on May 21, the Arkansas River near Muskogee climbed over flooding phase of 28 feet, as well as the captain of the Dennis Collins was allowed to relocate further up theGrand River At 8:05 a.m., the team of the Dennis Collins, with the help of the hauling vessel Legacy, supported regarding 1,000 feet right into the Grand River as well as connected 2 lines from the A F 15 to the barge MTC 7256 The MTC 7256 was protected abreast of the LTD 11140; both were packed with diammonium phosphate. The LTD 11140 was protected to a mooring cell secured in the shore, near the high-voltage line that went across the Grand River, with 2 fleet mooring cables, one at each shoreside edge. The Dennis Collins team supplemented the LTD 11140 mooring by running a 3rd line from the LTD 11140 midships cleat to a tree trunk.
The Arkansas River as well as the Grand River remained to climb, as well as both rivers climbed over significant flooding phase morning on May 22. The captain discovered that the 3rd line they had actually included was not long sufficient, so the team eliminated it as well as changed it with a 3rd fleet cable, noted with a drifting lp cyndrical tube. The captain additionally brought the hauling vessel’s engines on line as well as maintained them backwards at clutch rate in order to lower the current’s pressure on the fleet mooring cables as, he informed detectives, the circulation of water in the Grand River “got real bad.”
To discover what took place afterwards, download and install the complete NTSB record HERE.