Canadian bulker pilot error sparks series of alerts

摘要

Canadian investigators determined that pilot fatigue and poor bridge communications played a role in the November 2012 grounding of the bulker Tundra in the St Lawrence River east of Montreal. According to the newly released report by the Transportation Safety Board (TSB) of Canada: "The pilot and bridge team were not exchanging information regarding navigation, and the bridge team was unaware of a planned course change." The 30,892dwt Cyprus-flagged bulker, carrying a load of soya beans, was refloated a week later after some of its cargo was offloaded. An inspection downriver in Trois-Rivieres found only minor damage. The grounding was not a serious casualty and yet it does offer valuable lessons learned. The unidentified pilot went to sleep just before midnight on the day prior to the incident. He awoke at 0800 and remained awake until the grounding occurred at 2148. The TSB report noted the pilot had received two drunk-driving convictions in 2008 and also that he had been serving on the containership Horizon in 2004, when that vessel grounded in the same location as the Tundra.