The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) issued the report of its investigation of the allision of the bulk carrier Royal Pescadores with the tanker Da Heng Shan on 8 May 2014 in the Gage Roads Anchorage, Fremantle.
At about 0530 that morning in adverse weather conditions, the securing pin worked free from the Royal Pescadores’ port anchor chain stopper bar. The windlass brake could not hold the load, the cable ran out to its bitter end and broke loose, setting the ship adrift. Wind pushed the ship into the anchored Da Heng Shan thirteen minutes later, damaging both ships. The probable cause of the incident was inadequate maintenance of the Royal Pescadores’ anchoring equipment, failure to make routine rounds on the forecastle, and failure to keep the ship’s main engine in an appropriate state of readiness for the adverse weather conditions.
The full investigation report can be downloaded by clicking the image below.
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