Towing Safety

Towing Safety Advisory Committee to Meet in St. Louis

The Towing Safety Advisory Committee and its working groups will meet in St. Louis on Sept. 21-22, 2006, to discuss various issues relating to shallow-draft inland and coastal waterway navigation and towing safety. All meetings will be open to the public. Both the advisory committee and its working groups will meet in Salons A & B at the Hilton St. Louis Airport, located at 10330 Natural Bridge Road, St. Louis, Mo. The working groups will meet on Wednesday, Sept. 20, 2006, from 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., and the advisory committee will meet on Thursday, Sept. 21, 2006, also from 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

TSAC Meeting

The Towing Vessel Inspection Working Group of the Towing Safety Advisory Committee, sponsored by the U.S. Coast Guard, will meet in Arlington, Virginia on June 22 and 23. Topics on the agenda include proposed equipment standards and possible adoption of existing standards. 70 Fed. Reg. 34144 (HK Law)

Barge Grounds in Lake Michigan

A tug towing two barges ran into rough seas, grounding one barge, while attempting to find a safe haven. The tug, Holly Ann, owned by Holly Marine in Chicago, was towing two empty barges from Muskegon, Mich., to Chicago when seas increased to 10-12 feet and the captain decided to head for safety. The tug lost propulsion and steering while it was making its way toward the Holland Channel. The tug and first barge drifted to the Lake Michigan contractors’ dock and tied up on the pier

ACBL Announces New Appointments

American Commercial Barge Line has appointed Captain Samuel S. Dickey to the position of marine superintendent. He previously facilitated the training of ACBL Captains and Watch Captains at Seamen’s Church Institute in Paducah, Ky. Dickey attended the University of North Alabama and has 34 years of experience in the industry. Mario Muñoz has accepted the position of manager of corporate safety and loss control with ACBL. Muñoz was previously risk analyst

Proposed Ruling Calls For Fixed Fire Safety

The U.S. Coast Guard's supplemental notice of proposed rulemaking (SNPRM) on "Fire Suppression Systems and Voyage Planning for Towing Vessels" appears in today's Federal Register. The SNPRM proposes the installation of fixed fire-extinguishing systems in the engine rooms of towing vessels, and it states that owners or operators, and masters, ensure that voyage planning is conducted before vessels towing barges commence on trips or voyages of at least 12 hours

AWO Hails New Deadlines for Towing Vessel Inspection Regs

The American Waterways Operators (AWO), the national trade association for the tugboat, towboat and barge industry, hails the enactment of provisions in the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2010 (P.L. 111-281) that bring the industry one step closer to a historic towing vessel inspection regulation to improve safety in the towing industry.  Section 701 of the Act requires the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) “to issue a notice of proposed rulemaking regarding inspection

Coast Guard Tries to Fix Towboat Licensing Rule Problems

The USCG published Interim Rules concerning new licensing regulations for Towing Vessels on November 19, 1999. These rules were generated in order to improve the safety record of the towing industry. There was great controversy over the evolution of these rules. Licensed individuals and operating companies considered these rules to be unnecessary overkill and were extremely reluctant to actively support the process. The Coast Guard aggressively pursued their objective and probably became so

Coast Guard Seeks Comments on Guidelines

In the August 6, 2002, Federal Register, the Coast Guard seeks comments on proposed assessment criteria to be used by Designated Examiners when evaluating candidates for licenses as officers of towing vessels, specifically when evaluating mariners' execution of certain prescribed tasks. These standards appear on the Department of Transportation's website. To access them, (1) go to http://dms.dot.gov/; (2) click on "Simple Search" on the bottom of the page; (3) type "12973" in the search box

Operation Big Tow – Great Lakes

The Ninth Coast Guard District will commence Operation Big Tow within the Great Lakes area of responsibility to ensure commercial tugs are compliant with rules, regulations and licensing procedures. The Coast Guard is conducting Operation Big Tow as a continuous safety message to the maritime industry community. The intent of this operation is strictly a marine safety focused operation being conducted to ensure that individuals operating Uninspected Towing Vessel (UTVs) are properly licensed

(Sub) Chapter M Finally Surfaces

For inland operators, Compliance, Safety & Technology make for heavy river traffic as software providers descend on a rapidly approaching, potentially lucrative niche market. Is there a panacea for subchapter M? Pending USCG Subchapter “M” (SubM) regulations will eventually require towing operators to implement safety standards and use safety management systems, or alternatively, allow for an annual Coast Guard inspection regime