Grounding of liquefied gas carrier Navigator Scorpio
Location: Haisborough Sand off Norfolk, England
Accident Investigation Report 30/2014
Investigation report into marine accident including what happened and safety lessons:
(1,267.26 kb)
Summary
At 1521 (UTC +1) on 3 January 2014 the Liberia registered liquefied gas carrier, Navigator Scorpio, ran aground on Haisborough Sand in the North Sea, England. The vessel was undamaged by the grounding; 2.5 hours later, it refloated on the rising tide.
Safety lessons
- the vessel ran aground in restricted waters after the officer of the watch had become distracted and lost positional awareness
- he passage plan was incomplete and the significant effects of wind and strong tidal streams had not been properly taken into account
- given the proximity to danger, appropriate navigational techniques were not applied and the bridge manning was insufficient
- weaknesses in the crew’s navigation capability had been identified during an audit of the vessel, however, follow up actions were not sufficient to prevent the grounding
Recommendations
The vessel’s managers, Bernhard Shulte Shipmanagement, have conducted a thorough investigation into the grounding and taken action to prevent recurrence. This includes additional assessments and training for the crew of Navigator Scorpio as well as improvements to the safety management system. As a result of actions taken, no recommendations have been made in this report.
Published: 6 November 2014