The Bald Head Island ferry “Adventure” ran aground December 17, 2013 while carrying approximately 53 passengers near Battery Island, N.C. (U.S. Coast Guard Photo)
A veteran captain of a Bald Head Island ferry was likely daydreaming when his vessel ran aground in December 2013 in North Carolina, injuring 14 people, according to a U.S. Coast Guard Report of Investigation report obtained by local Star News Online.
gCaptain reported last year that the U.S. Coast Guard along with partner agencies responded December 17, 2013 to a report of multiple injuries after the Bald Head Island Ferry “Adventure” ran hard aground on a sand bar in the vicinity of Battery Island on the Cape Fear River near Southport, North Carolina. Of the 53 or so passengers onboard at the time of grounding, thirteen passengers and one crewmember sustained non life-threatening injuries in the accident.
According to Star News, the report said that “the master never realized or was aware how close he was from the sand bars near Battery Island since he never reduced speed or tried any actions to avoid the grounding… There is the likelihood that the master was lost in thought (daydreaming) behind the helm, since he cannot explain what occurred.”
The report said that a few minutes prior to the grounding, the Captain turned slightly to port to avoid a oncoming tugboat and never re-adjusted, Star News reports. The vessel was doing about 19 knots when it hit the sand bar, the report said.
The report added that the Captain had been subscribed medication due to the death of his dog and he admitted to taking one pill the day before the grounding, but investigators concluded the captain was not under the influence of any drugs at the time of the accident, Star News reports.
Star News says that the Captain has since decided to retire after 133,000 safe river crossings and 30 years of service.
A 37-year-old crew member was saved after spending three harrowing days adrift at sea following alleged abuse aboard a fishing vessel. Afif Efendy, a crew member of the fishing vessel...
British oil and gas major Shell on Tuesday settled a London lawsuit it brought against environmental group Greenpeace after activists boarded a Shell oil production vessel last year.
Satellite imagery show that Russian naval ships have left Moscow's base at Tartous on Syria's coast and some have dropped anchor offshore following the overthrow of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad by rebel forces.
December 10, 2024
Total Views: 16141
Why Join the gCaptain Club?
Access exclusive insights, engage in vibrant discussions, and gain perspectives from our CEO.
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.