ENG 2212 : FOUNDATION ENGLISH 2

SEMESTER II 2022
(MEI- SEPTEMBER)

TOPIC: MARITIME ACCIDENT

GROUP 3
MUHAMAD KHAIRUL NIZAM
VINCENT TIONG
WONG TIIUNG YONG
 Outline
1.0 Introduction
2.0 George Prince Ferry Disaster
3.0 Facts of Accident
4.0 Human Errors that Involved in Accident
5.0 Common causes of Maritime Accidents
6.0 Conclusion
1.0 Introduction
 Marine is a vital pillar of the entire world economy, providing tens of thousands of high-paying
jobs on ships of all types and in many onshore and offshore facilities.

 These jobs carry a high risk, especially for workers on board ships, putting them at risk of life-
threatening accidents and injuries.

 When a person uses any kind of transportation, accidents are very likely to happen.

 Accidents happen because of human mistakes, but the effects are lasting and lingering.

 Even if a marine accident occurs, resulting in casualties, the loss must be borne.
 Types of marine accidents, such as : i. collisions
ii. groundings
iii. Sinking
 Related to factors such as : i. human error
ii. poor ship management
iii. fatigue
iv. communication failures
 Associated with disasters on ships due to bad weather, rocky waters and other hazardous
conditions.
 Covers a wide range of occupations and workplaces, including ports and offshore facilities.
 Seafarers and other maritime workers face a variety of marine injuries, both at sea and on
land.
2.0 George Prince Ferry Disaster
 On October 20, 1976, the George Prince ferry collided with the Norwegian tanker
Frosta on the Mississippi River.

 The 120-foot George Prince and 665-foot Frosta collided as the ferry sailed from
Destrehan to Luling, carrying mostly industrial workers.

 Crazy horns and radio calls from the tanker failed to alert the ferry's pilots to the
looming danger.

 The Frosta rushed past the boat, turned it over, and sent the vehicle and ninety-five
passengers into the cold, muddy water.

 77 people lost their lives; nineteen were St. Charles Parish residents and twelve were
from St. John.

 Eighteen survivors battled swirling water, freezing temperatures and chaos as they
struggled to escape.
3.0 Facts of Accident
 On October 20, 1976, as the ferry began to sail from Destrehan to Luling, it collided head on with a
tanker upstream.

 From the moment Frosta hit George Prince, its effects were devastating.

 The Frosta penetrated the harbour hull of the George Prince, exposing it to the river.

 The ship's crew watched in horror as the George Prince was pushed upstream before capsizing to
starboard.

 Eighteen passengers and crew of the George Prince were trapped inside, while an unknown number
of passengers sank to the bottom of the river.

 Those on the George Prince's deck unsuccessfully rushed to life jacket lockers or hid in their cars.

 Of the survivors, 14 were thrown from the George Prince during the impact, while four found
themselves pulled under the ship.
 The crew of the Frosta immediately began radioing the Coast Guard for emergency
assistance.

 Frosta's crew launched lifeboats to search for survivors.

 Two adjacent ferries, Ollie K. Wilds and Polyviking, also attempted to rescue any survivors.

 Ollie Wilds used two benches in the waiting room as makeshift planks for 16 survivors who
were trapped aboard the overturned George Prince.

 The Coast Guard deployed helicopters to begin aerial searches for survivors and sent diving
teams to assist those trapped underwater.

 Shortly thereafter, divers reported no signs of life, and they pulled those who perished from the
hull and wheelhouse.

 The remaining 58 passengers on the George Prince were washed up on nearby river banks or
salvaged from the water.
4.0 Human Errors that Involved
in Accident
 The George Prince under the control of Egidio Auletta and almost immediately turned around to cross
the river.

 This is because the flow of water is slow and the amount of car traffic makes crossing the river as fast
as possible attractive.

 Driving into river traffic could exist collision, but Auletta did not signal by horn that he intended to cross
the river.

 Due to the effects of alcohol, Auletta did not spot the approaching vessel until the final seconds before
the collision.

 The main cause of the tragedy was that George Prince drove into the waterway without due regard to
river traffic and the risk of a collision.
 Besides, Frosta's navigator Nicholas Colombo correctly assessed the risk of collision and
sought an agreement on the safe passage of both ships.

 Due to the relative difficulty of manoeuvring a boat in the fairway, it was the local custom that
small boats give way to larger boats in river traffic, but it was not exempt from his legal
requirement to yield traffic from the starboard side.

 After seeing the Ollie K Wilds cross, Frosta's pilot made several attempts to contact the ferry
and saw George Prince turn into his path immediately after departure.

 He did not order to slow down or reverse before the collision as the ferry continued to drive into
danger and failed to respond to the contact attempt.

 Finally, the boat responded 15 seconds less to the "full reverse" command than it did before
hitting the ferry.

 In this case, Colombo chose to go by convention and then not make contact. He should be
taken into account that George Prince was slow to react and acted quickly to avoid a collision.
5.0 Common causes of
Maritime Accidents
 1. Faulty Design of a Vessel or Part

- The ship designer is responsible for designing the damaged ship and
certain parts of the ship.

- In the case of personal injury at sea, a longshoreman fell 40 feet from a

ladder to the deck.

- In this case, a designer copies the design from another stage.

Therefore, if a product design is to be copied without the permission,
knowledge or participation of the original designer, the responsibility is
better on the copy than on the design part.

- Copying is responsible for using the design because it is in a good place

to avoid mistakes.

- It is important to help the designer locate the defective areas, such as

ladders or items, and be responsible for the damage to the customer.
 2. Bad Weather and Natural Disasters

- Anything from storms to natural disasters can cause serious damage.

- For example, in September 2005, during Hurricane Rita, the instrument

was uprooted, hit a rig on the Louisiana Outer Continental Shelf off the
coast of South Marsh.

- In cases like this, it is up to the attorney to decide whether the ship is

anchored properly or not, what causes the ship to move freely during a
storm, and ultimately whether it has a fixed structure.

- Even if the disaster stemmed from a natural disaster, it did not mean
employees were hired or supervised by supervisors.

- The injured party’s attorney examines the facts of each case and
determines the liability of others to make up the entire injured party.
6.0 Conclusion
• Maritime accidents have a unique set of circumstances, causes and contributing factors.

• There are some commonalities between accidents that provide important insights into how we
can avoid future accidents. There are three areas need to be prioritized first.

• First, reducing human error and mistakes. In every accident, the crew may or may not have
taken steps to prevent the accident.

• Future safety regulations should ensure that companies and regulators have systems in place
to prevent crew overwork and provide proper training in ship operations, safety procedures
and decision-making.

• Second, optimizing ship design and integrity. Design changes or inspections can prevent
accidents from at least catastrophic or loss of life.
• Regulation is required to ensure that ships are constructed to prevent and minimise the
conditions that lead to accidents.

• An effective inspection program is also important to ensure the integrity of the vessel before
launching.

• Third, deploying the latest technology. In many incidents, the right technology on board could
have saved the day.

• Basic technologies such as smoke detectors and advanced technologies such as GPS-enabled
EPIRBs must be deployed to reduce hazard risks.

• In this modern age of technology, maritime safety is moving in the right direction. Past accident
investigations have identified measures to make it safer than it is now.

• Now, we need the will of politicians, companies and shipowners to make the necessary
changes to make this happen.
THANK
YOU