GENESIS RIVER

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NTS B published accident report

The NTSB has released its final report into the collision of the 'Genesis River' and a tank barge on the Lower Houston Ship Channel which resulted in a spill of 11,000 barrels of reformate, on May 10, 2019. The 'Genesis River' prepared to sail from Houston and took aboard two pilots. Upon coming aboard the vessel, the first pilot instructed the bridge crew to put both radars on standby and turn both ECDIS terminals off because the distracting proximity alarms on the devices could not be disabled. The pilots proceeded to navigate down the channel visually, with assistance from a portable pilot unit (PPU). During the transit, the pilots discussed the vessel's "little bitty rudder" and said that "she's takin' lotsa wheel" to maneuver, according to VDR data. Shortly after, the second pilot (who had the conn) called for full sea speed - a common practice among pilots once within the Lower Houston Ship Channel, according to NTSB - and the vessel slowly sped up to 12 knots. Just after passing the inbound LPG tanker 'BW Oak' in a widened area of the channel known as the Bayport Flare, Genesis River swung unexpectedly to port, putting her on a course for the east side of the channel. She was now facing directly at the oncoming tug 'Voyager' and its tow - two tank barges with reformate. The second pilot called the 'Voyager' and instructed her bridge team to turn to port - against general COLREGS guidance - and cross to the west side of the channel in order to get out of Genesis River's way. The Voyager complied, turning hard to port and heading for the west side of the channel at full speed ahead. The 'Genesis River' entered the barge lane on the east bank of the channel and touched bottom, the first pilot told investigators. She then swung back to starboard and veered towards the middle of the channel - right where Voyager was maneuvering. The pilot, after attempting evasive maneuvers, realized a collision was inevitable and gave rudder orders to direct the bow of the tanker at the barges, not at the towboat. The tanker captain ordered full astern shortly before the impact. The 'Genesis River's vertical, bulbless "Sea Arrow" bow design cut through the barge's number two starboard and port tanks, breaching both. The force of the collision capsized the other barge and tore both barges loose from the towboat. No personnel were injured, but about 11,000 barrels of reformate cargo was released into the water. The U.S. Coast Guard commissioned a hydrodynamic reconstruction of the casualty, examining the maneuvering characteristics of the 'Genesis River' as she passed by BW Oak in the shallow channel. The study determined that the vessel herself met all applicable IMO requirements, but the pilot's decision to travel at "sea speed" in a shallow and restricted channel may have affected the loss of path stability. The vessel's even keel trim may also have been a factor, as she may have had better handling characteristics if she had been trimmed by the stern. "By transiting the Genesis River at sea speed in Nav. Full mode, with the limitations imposed by this condition, Pilot 2 had little room for error and no options to recover once control was lost. It should be noted that, transited in maneuvering mode at an ordered speed of half ahead (about 10.2 knots) . . . [Genesis River] would have arrived at Bolivar Roads near the terminus of the Houston Ship Channel just 25 minutes later than had it successfully transited at sea speed," concluded the NTSB. Additionally, the location where the 'Genesis River' passed the 'BW Oak' may have contributed to the loss of control. At the Bayport Flare, a bank constrains the channel on the east side, but there is a larger dredged fairway to the west. Bank forces would not have acted on Genesis River until she reached the southern end of the flare, at which point she came into proximity with the western bank as the channel narrowed again. The disabled radar and ECDIS systems were not likely a contributing factor in the collision, the NTSB concluded.

K Line holds tanker responsible for accident

The K Line was holding the "Genesis River" accountable for the Houston Ship Channel incident and oil spill when the tanker was in collision with two barges, releasing thousands of barrels of gasoline product into bay, in Houston Ship Channel on May 10, 2019. One barge capsized and the other was damaged, leaking product into the water. The K Line Energy Ship Management filed a complaint in Galveston federal court alleging that the "Genesis River" was forced to change course repeatedly by erratic movements. Kirby Inland Marine first filed a suit against K Line and FPG in June, alleging that the "Genesis River" had changed direction twice before colliding into a Kirby-owned tug and two of its barges, spilling hundreds of thousands of gallons of reformate. In Kirby's initial lawsuit, the company claimed damages stemming from the crash, sinking and the clean up.

Houston Ship Channel fully reopened

The Houston Ship Channel reopened on May 15 to two-way traffic after salvage crews removed the two gasoline barges ‘Kirby 3001ST‘ which was heavily damaged, and ‘MMI 3041‘‚ which capsized and ended bottom up. About 11,280 barrels of gasoline spilled into the channel near Bayport, Texas. The "Kirby 3001ST' was pumped out on May 14, and the removal of the Kirby Corp-operated barges by the Bayport Channel Collision Response was completed by midday and two-way traffic resumed. It previously had been decided to tow away the capsized "MMI 3041" instead of draining its tanks of fuel, speeding up the reopening by at least two days. 41 ships were waiting at noon (5 p.m. GMT) to enter the 53-mile waterway connecting the refining hubs of Houston and Texas City to the Gulf of Mexico, up from 33 in the morning. 24 outbound vessels waited in the afternoon. The accident was under investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board and the U.S. Coast Guard. The "Genesis River" remained stationary at the Bayport Container Terminal.