Marine Accident Report: Collision of S/T MOBIL VIGILANT and S/T MARINE DUVAL on the Neches River Near Beaumont, Texas, February 25, 1979

摘要

At 0409 c.s.t., on February 25, 1979, the S/T MARINE DUVAL sank after colliding with the S/T MOBIL VIGILANT at a bend in the Neches River near Beaumont, Texas. The total damage to the vessels was estimated at $6,200,000. No persons were injured. The sunken MARINE DUVAL blocked the river for over 3 days, disrupting deep-draft vessel traffic via the port of Beaumont. The National Transportation Safety Board determines that the probable cause of the accident was the pilots' loss of control of their vessels, in a meeting situation in a bend, due to their failure to timely compensate for the effects on maneuverability of the limited depth of the channel, bank effect, and current eddies. Contributing to the accident was the failure of both pilots to use radar and their ineffective use of bridge-to-bridge radiotelephone to avoid meeting in a bend. The MARINE DUVAL sank as a result of hull damage below the waterline which was caused by the MOBIL VIGILANT's bulbous bow.