Towboat fire leads to barge breakaway, captain's dismissal

摘要

Federal investigators attributed a fire that left a towboat and nine barges adrift in the Mississippi River �� and indirectly spurred the captain's dismissal �� to spraying lube oil that ignited on a hot engine surface. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) determined the fire aboard the 3,600-hp Jacob Kyle Rusthoven on Sept. 12, 2018, started on a starboard main engine turbocharger. The flames disabled the vessel's propulsion and steering systems, leaving the towboat and nine-barge tow adrift broadside to the current. All six crew escaped to good Samaritan vessels, but four were later treated for smoke inhala-tion. The vessel, valued at $1.5 mil-lion, was a total loss.