BALTIC ARROW

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NTSB report into grounding incident published

The 'Baltic Arrow' became wedged in a river bank during attempts by its pilot to correct its position as it prepared to enter port, marine investigators of the Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB)have found. The ship, en route from Riga to Wisbech in Cambridgeshire with a cargo of timber, got stuck in the River Nene on June 25 at 08:49 a.m. BST at a speed of six knots, with the stern then pushed onto the eastern bank by the flood tide, wedging the vessel across the river. At 08:14 it had passed the Cross Keys swing bridge on the Nene, reducing speed in preparation for the berthing manoeuvre at the Port of Wisbech. One of the two pilots on board noticed the vessel was slightly to port of the planned track and attempted to correct its position, but the bow quickly swung to starboard. The vessel was refloated with tug assistance 11 hours later by the Wisbech Harbour Authority. The MAIB has recommended a review of vessel suitability for transits to and from the Port of Wisbech. The Wisbech Port stated that all berths at Wisbech port were NAABSA berths, which stands for 'not always afloat but safely aground' so, technically, all vessels ground whilst moored here during low water. The MAIB report said the pilot did not realise they had over-corrected the vessel until it was too late, and helming it for two hours may have led to a lapse of concentration. The vessel's bridge team was communicating ineffectively, and insufficient action had been taken to prevent the incident happening again after the 'Baltic Express', a sister vessel, also ran aground in February 2023. The Wisbech Harbour Authority has commissioned an independent inquiry into the incident, as well as a review into the suitability of transits to and from the Port of Wisbech. The Galleywood Shipping (Baltic Arrow) Ltd has also considered introducing an additional bridge watchkeeper and reviewed the ship's rudder capabilities. Report with photos: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c80r780nv22o

Grounding off Fowey

On Aug 30, 2019, at 10.20 p.m. the 'Lady Nola', enroute from Saint Brieuc, ran aground on rocks off the port of Fowey, Cornwall. It got stuck on the Polruan side of port entrance. On Aug 31 it remained in pos. 50° 19.67' N 004° 38.46' W. The ship was en route from Le Legue, to Fowey with a crew of six on board, carrying 2800 metric tonnes of China clay as cargo. The port tug "Morgawr" and the Fowey Pilot Boat were on site. No assistance was required from the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA). The vessel floated off approximately at 3 a.m. on Aug 31 and was taken to the Fowey docks for an underwater inspection. No pollution was reported.

Cargo ship entangled in catamaran

Two people had to be rescued after the "Lady Nola" and the 42 ft catamaran yacht "Robin Hood" collided in the English Channel on Aug 8, 2018, at 4.10 a.m. The Coastguard after receiving a mayday call scrambled its SAR helicopter from Lydd to the incident site near Dungeness. The Dungeness RNLI lifeboat and the Dover RNLI lifeboat as well as the Dungeness Coastguard Rescue Team were also called out at 4.10 a.m. The mast of the yacht become entangled with the superstructure of the cargo vessel in position 50 51 59 N, 000 55 09 W with two of its ropes, keeping the vessels tied to each other. No immediate water ingress has been reported, however, a small damage to the side of the catamaran was found. After the RNLI Shannon class lifeboat 13-02 “The Morrell’ arrived on scene, the coxswain Adams put two of his volunteer crewmembers aboard the "Robin Hood" to establish everyone was accounted for and no one had any injuries. With the help of two crew from the cargo vessel, the two RNLI volunteers managed to untangle and separate the two vessels. After the crew’s assessment of the catamaran and the well-being of her passengers, Adams decided to bring the casualty around Dungeness point and transferred two more lifeboat crew onto the stricken vessel to secure the two hulls of the catamaran together, making it safer for the casualty to be towed to Dover Harbour, where it was safely moored on the visitors pontoon. After the ships were separated, the cargo ship was on its way from Riga to Shoreham in West Sussex where it arrived at 12.30 a.m. The Maritime & Coastguard’s enforcement team and the duty surveyor were monitoring the situation. The Marine Accident Investigation Branch has been notified. Report with photo: https://rnli.org/news-and-media/2018/august/08/dungeness-rnli-assists-with-collision-in-the-english-channel