Investigation shows container ship likely to blame for collision with destroyer

News was prepared under the information support of Online Daily Newspaper on Hellenic and international Shipping "Hellenic Shipping News".

30 Oct 2009

In an investigation into a crash between a Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force (MSDF) destroyer and a commercial container vessel in southern Japan on Tuesday, the Japan Coast Guard has found that the accident may have been caused by an error by the commercial vessel.
The 7th Regional Coast Guard Headquarters found that the 7,401-ton South Korean container ship Carina Star made a sharp left turn under Kanmon Bridge, facing the direction of a near right angle with the 5,200-ton MSDF ship Kurama. Further investigations are being conducted to determine whether an error committed by the commercial ship -- which possibly could have run aground or struck a pier at Shimonoseki, Yamaguchi Prefecture, if it had not collided with the destroyer -- caused the crash.
According to the Japan Coast Guard and other sources, a Panamanian cargo ship was sailing east in the center of the strait at approximately six knots immediately before the collision. The Carina Star was sailing behind the freighter at 12 to 14 knots.
Analysis of records from radar and Automatic Identification Systems (AIS) carried aboard ships by the 7th Regional Coast Guard Headquarters revealed that the Carina Star rapidly approached the cargo vessel near the right side of the Panamanian ship's stern immediately before the crash. A controller with Kanmon Kaikyo Traffic Advisory Service Center (Kanmon MARTIS) advised the freighter to shift toward the right, and recommended that the Carina Star pass it on its left.
As the Carina Star passed underneath Kanmon Bridge, it turned left at an acute angle that is generally unthinkable when passing another ship. As a result, it is believed the Carina Star veered into the path of the Kurama, which was sailing in the other direction, causing the Carina Star's starboard side and the Kurama's bow to crash into each other.
"With the speed and angle at which the Carina Star made the turn, it would have been difficult for the ship to regain its original position afterwards," said Mitsuyoshi Nomata, deputy director of the 7th Regional Coast Guard Headquarters. "There is no doubt that it would have been difficult for the Kurama to avoid a collision (under the circumstances)."

Source: The Mainichi Daily News