SAFETY4SEA Focus - Q1 2018

16 SAFETY 4SEA I issue 01 I Q1 2018 safety4sea.com ARTICLE Case study analysis: ECDIS alarm disabled The incident At 1515 on 14 July 2014, a Baha- mas registered Ro-Ro passenger ferry grounded on a charted, rocky shoal in the approaches to St. Peter Port, Guernsey. Noone was injured, there was no pollution and the vessel continued its passage into the harbour. There was significant raking damage including breaches of the hull, resulting in flooding of double-bottom void spaces. The investigation found that there had been insufficient pas- sage planning for the voyage; in particular, for the transit through the Little Russel, the extremely low tide and effect of squat were not properly considered. This resulted in the bridge team being unaware of the limits of safe water availa- ble and thus, despite their good positional awareness, they headed into danger without appreciation of the risk. Several course alterations intended to regain track were ineffective due to the tidal stream setting the vessel off course. Ad- Vessel’s track vs. Recommended track (Credit: UK MAIB) ditionally, the absence of any alarm, steering and propulsion responding normally, and the Master’s convic- tion that there had been sufficient depth of water, led to a collective denial of the possibility that the vessel might have grounded. The company’s approved route for use through the Little Russel was not followed and the vessel’s elec- tronic chart display and information system was not utilized effectively, because key safety features were either disabled or ignored.