NTSB Publishes Report on New Orleans Tanker Grounding
The decision to overtake a tow in a large river bend occupied by multiple vessels during high-river conditions led to the grounding of a tanker and contact with river intake fender systems in New Orleans, La., the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said.Marine Investigation Report 22/11 details the NTSB’s investigation into the March 16, 2021, grounding of the tanker Bow Tribute and subsequent contact with the fender systems protecting two river intakes owned by the city’s sewerage and water board.
USCG Recognizes Steamship Pilots Hurricane Isaac Heroics
One year after Hurricane Isaac scattered more than a hundred ships and vessels in the Lower Mississippi River, the United States Coast Guard (USCG) honored two New Orleans-Baton Rouge Steamship Pilots (NOBRA) for their fearless actions in braving gale force winds and a storm surge to rescue several crippled vessels and their crews and prevent further casualties from the Category One storm, announced Captain Michael E. Rooney, NOBRA president. The USCG award ceremony honoring the NOBRA pilots was conducted today at the Maritime Pilots Institute (MPI) in Covington, La.
Mississippi River Pilots Limit Large Ship Movements
According to a Feb. 2 report from Bloomberg, deep-draft ships traveling on sections of the Mississippi River in southern La. will be allowed to run only during the day because of shallow water and lack of dredging, the New Orleans Baton Rouge Steamship Pilots Association said. (Source: Bloomberg)
USCG Arrests Master for Intoxication
Jim Letten , United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Louisiana, Rear Adm. Robert Duncan, Commander Eighth Coast Guard District and Special Agent in Charge Donald G. Lane of the Coast Guard Criminal Investigative Service (CGIS) Gulf Region, announced the arrest of Yuriy Roshkalyov, captain of the motor vessel Leeds Castle for operating a commercial vessel under the influence of alcohol in violation of Title 46, United States Code, Section 2302. The statute, a Class A misdemeanor which is punishable with up to one (1) year imprisonment, prohibits the operation of a vessel while under the influence of alcohol. Roshkalyov was arrested and removed from the vessel on April 17, 2006.
From the Bridge of the Ship Simulator
When a pilot learning to guide ships along the Mississippi River makes a mistake and crashes into a New Orleans wharf, the only thing that ends up damaged is his ego. That's because the mistakes happen in a ship simulator housed in an old movie theater in Covington, La. The $1 million simulator can place a pilot on the bridge of a ship anywhere along the river between the mouth of the Mississippi and Baton Rouge. Scenes projected on the walls of the simulator, located in what once was the old DeLuxe movie theater in downtown Covington across Lake Pontchartrain from New Orleans, accurately depict every aspect of the 240 miles of waterway.
