In its report on a May 9, 2022, incident that noticed a Royal Caribbean cruise ship strike a cruise terminal pier inflicting $2.1 million in harm, the National Transportation Safety Board identifies overreliance on an ECDIS digital chart, miscommunication and an outdated navigational chart as all elements in inflicting the strike.
The cruise ship Radiance of the Seas was docking on the Sitka Sound Cruise Terminal on May 9, 2022, when it struck and broken a mooring dolphin. The cruise ship sustained a minor hull indentation. The mooring dolphin sustained harm to a few of the 4 pilings supporting it. There have been no reported accidents to the 1,375 passengers, 782 crew and 4 pilots on board. The contact resulted in $2.1 million in damages to the pier and impacted cruise ship site visitors to the Sitka Sound Cruise Terminal for the rest of the 2022 season.
In April 2021, the terminal pier was prolonged by 395 toes, together with including two mooring dolphins linked by a walkway and a 410-foot-long floating dock subsequent to the prevailing dolphins. The Sitka Sound Cruise Terminal didn’t inform the National Ocean and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the company accountable for updating U.S. coastal nautical charts, of the extension. NOAA had no file of the development till NTSB investigators knowledgeable them of the pier’s extension after the contact.
At the time of the contact, the digital navigation chart (ENC) the cruise ship was utilizing didn’t present the prolonged pier or added dolphins.
The crew of the Radiance of the Seas relied closely on the vessel’s digital chart and data system (ECDIS) to plan and execute their docking. The grasp and bridge crew had different navigational applied sciences, together with radars and cameras, accessible to help them with the method to the terminal. Even with these instruments accessible, the crew relied solely on the ECDIS, which confirmed an inaccurate ENC.
While docking, the bosun and grasp didn’t affirm the kind of distances that have been being communicated through the docking. The bosun was relaying correct distances to the pier’s northernmost dolphin, however the grasp incorrectly assumed the bosun was calling out how a lot clearance the ship would have as the strict handed the dolphin.
PROBABLE CAUSE
The NTSB decided the possible explanation for the contact was the grasp and bridge crew’s overreliance on an digital chart to determine the pier’s place relative to their deliberate rotation location, and the grasp’s misunderstanding of the clearance distances to the pier being known as by the crewmember on the strict whereas the vessel was rotating. Contributing was the Sitka Sound Cruise Terminal not reporting the extension of the pier into the waterway to the suitable hydrographic authority with a view to replace the related navigational chart.
LESSONS LEARNED
NTSB investigators cited two classes realized on account of the investigation, voyage planning and reporting port or terminal modifications.
“Proper voyage planning includes developing a complete plan for every phase of the voyage—from the vessel’s starting port to its end port (berth to berth), including leaving the dock and mooring,” the report mentioned. “Reference points for maneuvering should be identified, measured precisely, and reported clearly. Vessel bridge teams should also ensure that they have the most up-to-date data before getting underway and consult with the local pilot(s) on the accuracy of navigation charts to ensure depictions of ports and/or terminals are correct.”
“Ports and terminals should immediately report significant modifications to port or terminal configurations to the appropriate hydrographic authority (for example, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) so that charts can be updated and the changes made readily available to vessel owners, operators, and crews/bridge teams,” the report mentioned.
- Download the complete NTSB report HERE
