# Serious accident when shifting ship



## Mike S (Dec 27, 2005)

http://forum.shipais.com/index.php?showtopic=8210&pid=61343&st=0&#entry61343 

Interesting and quite terrifying accident when shifting ship in bad weather. Too little tug power in the wrong place in weather conditions that seemed to be out of the envelope.
I have to ask the question.........why do people insist on tugs being used in the push pull mode halfway down the side of the vessel when they should be well forward (in this case) one towing through the centre lead and the other pushing on the stem?
The location of the two tugs in this case look as though they are almost on the pivot point!
My sympathy goes to the crew of the tug that was crushed. At least no one killed. The tug looks very 2nd hand however.


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## stein (Nov 4, 2006)

The youtube link (it is in the link above, but I suggest diving straight in): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=awVm6Lt6ONQ&feature=player_embedded#


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## Mike S (Dec 27, 2005)

Many thanks Stein.......I was looking to try and get straight in however my computer skills are very rudimentary.


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## Piero43 (Jun 17, 2005)

Two considerations:
- why the ship didn't (seemingly) try to help the tugs momoeuvering with thrusters (on such a ship there should be at least one bow thruster) and / or engines? it seems that she started her engines just after the acident occurred.
- why the tug's crew didn't try to steer away before of being cornered?


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## roddy (Mar 5, 2006)

If you google the ships name CMA CGM DEBUSSY you will pull down much more detailed information on the event. No of Tugs and avaliable Horse Power will be key elements in the inevitable apportionment of blame exercise carried out by the underwriters.


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## Mike S (Dec 27, 2005)

As I say Piero 43 if the tugs had been positioned correctly one towing at the bow and the other well forward so that she could escape then there would not be a video to watch.
Putting any tug and particularly low powered tugs way back from the stem like that is a recipe for disaster. 30 years working moderate powered tugs in Fremantle alongside more powerful boats makes me well aware of this problem. It stands to reason. Get the tug as far forward or aft of the pivot point and life is easy. Stick them on the side like that and all they are good for is as a fender.


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## Andrew Craig-Bennett (Mar 13, 2007)

She is British flag, so the MAIB will be on the case and in due course we will all be able to read their report.

Personally I was struck by the way in which several men are standing in the line of fire of the snagged stern line around minute 7 - good thing it did not part.


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## John Gurton (Apr 10, 2006)

Have just looked at the harbour in Constanta on Google maps. It would appear the vessel was in a strong E'ly wind . There may well have been another bigger tug already on C/L forward where most pilots would have one, these two older low powered units maybe being brought in to see what they could do. The harbour appears to be contained so no appreciable current would be running therefore the wind the only thing to contend with. 
Hindsight being a great thing but it would appear that a good thrash of the engine would have eased the situation, maybe astern to get her to seek the wind or hard to port full ahead and cross yr fingers ! Many other factors would need to be considered before passing judgement though. Scary stuff, there but for fortune .......


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## CAPTAIN JEREMY (Mar 9, 2010)

Mike S said:


> As I say Piero 43 if the tugs had been positioned correctly one towing at the bow and the other well forward so that she could escape then there would not be a video to watch.
> Putting any tug and particularly low powered tugs way back from the stem like that is a recipe for disaster. 30 years working moderate powered tugs in Fremantle alongside more powerful boats makes me well aware of this problem. It stands to reason. Get the tug as far forward or aft of the pivot point and life is easy. Stick them on the side like that and all they are good for is as a fender.


Having looked at the video, the tug seems to have been a very effective fender!!


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## Klaatu83 (Jan 22, 2009)

On a lot of the newer ships the position of the tugs is often dictated by the shape of the hull. I have been on ships where tugs had to be secured farther amidships than would otherwise have been ideal because they might could not get a good purchase for pushing due to the extremely curved shapes at the extremities. If you look at the video you can clearly see marks on the ship's hull designating the recommended positions for tugs to make fast. 

That being said, there is no doubt that the ideal place for the forward tug to secure would be through the ship's "bullnose".


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