The report also found that the senior crew took so long to assess the damage that if it had been more severe, the vessel could have been lost and passengers or crew could have died.
The report, compiled by the Marine Accident Investigation Branch, outlined how the Commodore Clipper conventional ferry, which was carrying 39 crew, 31 passengers and 23 vehicles, grounded on a rocky shoal during low water of a big spring tide in the Little Russel passage between Guernsey and Herm.
The impact caused ‘a noisy, shuddering vibration that reverberated throughout the ship’ and left it with:
- Deep gouging and distortion across two-thirds of the hulls shell plating.
- A water ballast tank holed in two places.
- Two void spaces and another water ballast tank breached by small holes and a fracture to the hull.
- And damage to the skeg (part of the rudder mounting).
However, despite being told by the chief engineer that the shudder was the worst he had ever experienced on a ship, the 60-year-old captain dismissed fears that the vessel had struck the bottom.
He said it was more likely that the propellers had hit an object, possibly a string of lobster pots, and the vessel continued into Guernsey Harbour.
The extensive damage was spotted during a pre-planned dive inspection after the vessel berthed following the crossing from Portsmouth.
The report found that the ship had not followed Condor’s approved route through the Russel and that attempts to bring it back on course failed because of the strong tidal currents.
It concluded that the grounding, which happened on 14 July last year, had been caused by a combination of insufficient passage planning, and the senior crew not properly considering the extremely low spring tide and the effects of squat – a phenomenon where a ship moving quickly through shallow seas sits lower than normal in the water.
The report added that the absence of an alarm, the fact that the steering and propulsion continued to work normally and the captain’s belief that they had been in sufficiently deep water led to a ‘collective denial’ of the possibility that the ship had hit the sea-bed.
Describing the impact, the report said: ‘The grounding caused significant hull damage along two-thirds of the length of the vessel.
The hull was holed in several places and internal structural damage was caused by the upward forces acting on the transverse frames.
‘Sea-water flooded into the void spaces but was contained by the vessel’s double-bottom construction.
The ballast tanks that were holed were already full of water and therefore there was no adverse effect on the vessel’s stability.
‘However, this was an extremely fortunate outcome, because if the vessel had been damaged in more vulnerable areas, such as stabilisers, steering or propellers, the situation could have posed a serious hazard to the vessel, its crew, passengers and environment.’
Although the captain reduced power immediately after the shudder, he soon dismissed the possibility of an impact and increased speed and continued into the harbour.
Describing the response, the report said that it if the bridge team had checked for damage sooner, the water ingress would have been identified earlier.
‘This would have then triggered a more prompt assessment of the situation, including a stability assessment and any damage control action necessary,’ the report said.
‘Had the damage to the hull been more severe, such delays could have led to the loss of the vessel or the loss of life.’
The report also revealed that Guernsey Harbour staff did not undertake an emergency response, as they were unaware of the grounding for more than two hours after the incident.
The Clipper was taken into dry dock in the UK after the accident and returned to service the next month. Condor has declined to reveal whether any members of the bridge crew were disciplined following the accident.
IN a statement, Captain Fran Collins, director of operations at Condor Ferries, said: ‘This is a fair report whose findings are consistent with our own investigation.
‘MAIB reports are crucial to ensuring that the whole maritime industry learns the lessons from incidents at sea, and in this respect, this report is extremely helpful.
‘Because safety is always Condor Ferries’ highest priority, we have already implemented all the recommendations in the report, implementing changes in training, operational practices and policies, and safety management systems.
‘We know that the Clipper incident caused considerable inconvenience for many of our customers.
‘It also meant many long hours for our dedicated staff, who worked tirelessly to keep the Islands connected and supplied.
‘I’d like to thank both our customers for their patience and our staff for their hard work.’
Meanwhile, an independent report commissioned in August 2014 by the States found that following the incident, Condor Ferries ‘took adequate recovery actions, in the interests of the islands, to recover their passenger and freight services’.
Analysis reviewed by the Ferry Services Steering Group, which oversees Condor Ferries’ operating agreement, has shown that the investment made in contingency planning was £1 million in excess of what could reasonably have been expected of a prudent operator.
