Towing Vessel Grounded After Pilot Leaves Wheelhouse Unattended

A pilot of a towing vessel on the Mississippi River left the helm unattended for several minutes, leading to a grounding near Thebes, Illinois, the National Transportation Safety Board said Thursday.​

While the towing vessel City of Louisville was upbound on the Mississippi River pushing 11 barges on July 29, 2023, it ran aground in a charted shallow and rocky area. The grounding caused fractures to the vessel’s bottom plating underneath the engine room, leading to water flooding into the engine room, machinery, and aft accommodation spaces.

An estimated 30 gallons of gear oil were released into the river. No injuries were reported. Damage to the vessel was estimated at $2 million.

​The pilot was alone on watch in the wheelhouse when the grounding occurred. The pilot told investigators that he had left the helm and went to the port side of the wheelhouse. He estimated he was away for about 5 minutes.

​“Leaving the helm unattended is contrary to prudent navigation practices when operating on rivers,” the report said. “The Mississippi River, in particular, has frequent turns, and the potential for strong currents and heavy traffic. Due to these factors, inattention to a vessel’s path, even for a brief time, can result in encountering other vessels and hazards such as shallow areas or structures on the banks nearby.”

During the time the pilot said he was away from the helm, he missed a course change to starboard along the recommended route. The pilot said that, before he left the helm, he checked the swing meter, fathometer, and the electronic chart system, or ECS, which would have displayed the upcoming change in course.

The pilot also did not realize the tow had begun to progress closer to the right descending bank while he was away from the helm. According to investigators, this should have been apparent from his reported position on the port side of the wheelhouse.

The City of Louisville was fitted with a pilothouse alerter system, which was designed to sound first in the wheelhouse and then in other vessel spaces to alert other crewmembers that the operator was not responding.

Investigators found that the power supply to the alerter system was missing, but they could not determine when it had been disconnected. Investigators were also not able to determine the interval that the alarm was set for.

“A pilothouse alerter, when used as intended, is an effective tool that can help ensure a towing vessel operator remains awake and vigilant while on duty (and notify another crewmember if the pilothouse alarm is not acknowledged),” the report said.

“Established procedures for the operation and use of the system should be outlined in the company safety management system and should include the time interval for reset of the alerter system, which should be set based on the vessel’s navigational risk and proximity to navigational hazards (including traffic), as well as measures to ensure the system cannot be unintentionally reset.”

The report is available here Marine Investigation Report 25-19

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