A barge that grounded and partially sank following the Marquette Warrior’s lack of steering.Its bean cargo was contaminated with water and was declared a loss estimated at $1,020,000
An electrical generator set (genset) failure and subsequent lack of steering led to the grounding of a towing vessel close to Greenville, Miss., the National Transportation Safety Board says.
The incident occurred when the towing vessel Marquette Warrior was pushing 35 loaded dry cargo barges down the Lower Mississippi River on November 21, 2021, when a number of barges grounded on the riverbank. Four barges had been broken, together with a hopper barge with bean cargo that partially sank. None of the 9 individuals on board the Marquette Warrior had been injured.
Like so many different grounding incidents, this one proved costly. It resulted in $1.24 million in damages to the vessel, barges and cargo.
“Following the grounding, the Marquette Warrior, aided by several nearby Good Samaritan vessels, corralled the scattered barges and rebuilt the tow. Four of the barges sustained damage, mostly to their rake bottoms and side shell plating, with the steel plating being dented or inset,” says the NTSB report. “One barge partially sank and was later salvaged; its bean cargo was contaminated with water and was declared a loss. The total damage to the barges was estimated to be $215,000, and the lost cargo was estimated to be worth $1,020,000. The Marquette Warrior also sustained an estimated $7,500 in damage as a result of the casualty.”
As the vessel was transiting, the engineer noticed flickering lights and a floor fault indication on the principle switchboard. The engineer contacted the pilot within the wheelhouse to request that the pilot cease the vessel so he might troubleshoot what he suspected was an issue with {the electrical} system. The pilot was not capable of cease the vessel because of the dimension of the tow and its location.
The engineer recognized a problem with the net port electrical genset. At the identical time, the pilot observed that he had misplaced steering management. Hearing that the vessel had misplaced steering, the engineer determined to change on-line gensets, which necessitated a short lived lack of the towboat’s electrical energy. Although the engineer resolved {the electrical} subject by switching gensets and restored steering comparatively rapidly, the lack of steering within the swift present and restricted maneuverability of the massive tow prevented the pilot from avoiding grounding.
Electricians’ evaluation of the genset’s alternator following the grounding indicated that the more than likely explanation for the failure was rubbing or chaffing of the sensing wiring harness, which led to arcing between terminal block posts, warmth buildup, insulation failure and eventual winding ring terminal connection failure.
NTSB investigators decided it’s doubtless the chaffing of the wiring harness befell over the 72 hours the genset ran between a November 7 upkeep inspection and the grounding on November 21.
The NTSB decided the possible explanation for the grounding was a lack of steering, doubtless attributable to a wiring harness inside {an electrical} generator that was improperly positioned throughout a upkeep inspection, ensuing within the harness contacting the terminal posts, ultimately inflicting the lack of 3-phase electrical energy to the steering pump motors.
“Proper operation and maintenance of electrical equipment is required to avoid damage to vessel critical systems and prevent potentially serious crew injuries, particularly for electrical systems with high and medium voltage and equipment with uninsulated and exposed components,” the report mentioned. “Electrical equipment should be installed, serviced, and maintained by qualified personnel familiar with the construction and operation of the equipment and the hazards involved.”
- As all the time, there’s a lot extra within the complete NTSB report
