Ship Lost Power Before Hitting Key Bridge in Baltimore
Summary
TLDRAn incident at the Port of Baltimore involving the motor vessel Dolly resulted in a dramatic loss of power and control, leading to a serious collision with a bridge pylon. The video script describes the ship's sudden darkness, belching of black smoke, and the subsequent drift towards the bridge, highlighting the potential for a major disaster. The situation appears to be a mechanical failure, with the ship's route and the companies involved remaining unclear. The incident raises concerns about maritime safety and bridge infrastructure.
Takeaways
- ๐ข Incident at Port of Baltimore: The motor vessel Dolly experienced an incident outbound from Baltimore, which was captured on video.
- ๐น Video Analysis: The video shows the ship going dark suddenly, indicating a loss of power, and then later regains power but also starts emitting black smoke, suggesting an engine problem.
- ๐ Mechanical Issue: The incident appears to be a mechanical issue as the ship lost power, causing it to lose control and proceed without propulsion or rudder control.
- ๐ณ Ship's Path: The Dolly was on a course out of the channel, but due to the power loss and engine issues, it began to veer off course, crossing from the north side to the south side of the channel.
- ๐ Bridge Collision: The ship eventually sideswiped a bridge pylon, causing a significant disaster, potentially the worst since the Tampa incident in the 1980s.
- ๐ Emergency Measures: The crew attempted to mitigate the situation by dropping the port side anchor, but it was insufficient to stop the ship's forward momentum.
- ๐ Ship's Origin and Destination: The Dolly, a Singapore-flagged and registered ship, was heading from Baltimore to Colombo, passing through the Panama Canal and across the Pacific.
- ๐จโโ๏ธ Pilot and Master: There was a Chesapeake Bay pilot on board to advise the ship's master, indicating that the incident was not due to pilot error or distraction as seen in previous cases.
- ๐ Power Fluctuations: The script suggests that the ship may have lost power more than once, as it was difficult to discern from the video, but this loss of power was a critical factor in the incident.
- ๐ข Updates to Follow: The speaker intends to provide further updates as more information becomes available, indicating that the situation is still developing and being assessed.
Q & A
What incident occurred at the Port of Baltimore?
-An incident occurred involving the motor vessel Dolly, which went dark and lost power while outbound from Baltimore, leading to a loss of control.
What is the significance of the ship going dark?
-The ship going dark signifies a loss of power, which resulted in the vessel losing its propulsion and control, leading to a potential maritime disaster.
What happened when the ship lost power?
-Upon losing power, the ship lost its rudder and propulsion, causing it to coast without control and eventually veer out of the channel.
What did the crew do in response to the power loss?
-The crew attempted to regain power, backed down the ship, and dropped the port side anchor to try to stop the vessel's forward movement.
Why was the ship's movement particularly dangerous?
-The ship's movement was dangerous because it led to it crossing from the north side to the south side of the channel and eventually out of the channel entirely, risking collision with infrastructure such as bridge pylons.
What was the intended destination of the ship?
-The ship was heading from Baltimore to Colombo, with plans to cross the Panama Canal and head across the Pacific.
What is the potential impact of the ship hitting a bridge pylon?
-Hitting a bridge pylon could lead to the collapse of the bridge, causing a major disaster similar to the one in Tampa in the 1980s.
Who was in command of the ship during the incident?
-The ship's Master was in command, with a Chesapeake Bay pilot on board to advise.
How does this incident compare to previous maritime incidents?
-This incident is particularly concerning due to the potential for a major bridge collapse, which would be one of the worst bridge disasters in the United States since the 1980s.
What is the current status of the ship?
-The script does not provide the final outcome of the incident, only a preliminary assessment based on the available video footage and information at the time of the discussion.
Are there any follow-up actions planned regarding this incident?
-Further updates are expected as more information becomes available and the situation develops.
Outlines
๐ข Incident at Port of Baltimore
The paragraph discusses an incident involving the motor vessel Dolly at the Port of Baltimore. The ship experienced a sudden loss of power, causing it to go dark and lose control while outbound from the port. The speaker attempts to clarify misinformation and provides a detailed account of the ship's movements based on a video from the port. The ship's loss of power and subsequent coasting is highlighted, along with the crew's attempts to regain control and the dropping of the port anchor. The speaker also speculates on potential causes for the power loss and the severity of the situation, noting the ship's Singapore registration and its intended route to Colombo via the Panama Canal and the Pacific.
๐ฅ Vessel Collision with Bridge Pylon
This paragraph continues the analysis of the Dolly incident, focusing on the ship's collision with a bridge pylon after losing power. The speaker describes the ship's trajectory, noting the release of the port anchor which failed to stop the vessel. The paragraph details the catastrophic consequences of the collision, emphasizing the potential for bridge collapse and the historical significance of such a disaster. The speaker also discusses the roles of the ship's master and the Chesapeake Bay pilot, dismissing the possibility of pilot distraction as a factor in the incident. The paragraph concludes with a mention of the ongoing investigation and a promise of further updates as more information becomes available.
Mindmap
Keywords
๐กChipping Salmer
๐กPort of Baltimore
๐กMotor Vessel Dolly
๐กOutbound
๐กShip Went Dark
๐กMechanical Issue
๐กRudder
๐กPropulsion
๐กBlack Smoke
๐กAnchor
๐กBridge Pylon
Highlights
Incident in the Port of Baltimore involving the motor vessel Dolly.
The ship Dolly went dark, indicating a loss of power.
The vessel was outbound from Baltimore when the incident occurred.
The ship's loss of power is believed to be due to a mechanical issue.
The ship was turning around the channel when it lost power.
After power loss, the ship was coasting without control.
The ship's power was restored momentarily before going dark again.
Black smoke was observed coming from the port funnel, indicating an engine problem.
The vessel may have tried to stop by backing down, causing it to careen.
The ship started veering out of the channel after losing power.
The port side anchor was dropped in an attempt to stop the ship.
The ship Dolly is Singapore flagged and leased by larger operating companies.
The ship was heading from Baltimore to Columbo, passing through the Panama Canal and across the Pacific.
The incident could result in a bridge disaster, the worst since the Tampa incident in the 1980s.
The ship's route and the company it was servicing are not specified.
The ship would have been under the command of the ship's Master and a Chesapeake Bay pilot.
The incident appears to be a mechanical issue rather than a case of pilot distraction.
The ship's loss of power led to it hitting a bridge pylon, causing a significant disaster.
Transcripts
hey what's going on with chipping salmer
kagano here this morning so we've had an
incident in the Port of Baltimore
involving the motor vessel Dolly
outbound from Baltimore I am just
beginning to process the information and
take a look at it but I want to clarify
something that I've been seeing that
needs to be done this is the video
coming from the Port of Baltimore I'm
going to go ahead and live stream it uh
or replay it this is Dolly coming out
notice the ship just went dark I'm going
to come back here for a second
go back here a second take you back
about 10 seconds here so she would have
came off the birth at dundock here and
if you play back this video you'll see
that the ship is is outbound turning
around the channel comes off to the uh
comes off of dundock right here goes out
the channel spins around and it's coming
out now let's be clear this is obviously
the e exit out this is where she wants
to come out go ahead and play it again
here she is coming out you'll see lights
along her side you'll see lights right
here that red light in the back is not
her but she goes dark all of a sudden so
now the ship is dark you are not having
any power on this vessel uh the ship has
basically dropped the plant so when I
initially heard about this happening
there was a lot of questions about was
this mechanical or is this human this is
obviously a mechan mechanical issue in
that they lost power we're not sure why
she lost power so here she is she is
basically coasting at this point without
any control now if she had lost power
does that mean she lost her Rudder uh
did she lost uh propulsion and the
vessel was in the channel on the
outbound leg she was coming out and you
see her still kind of moving here very
slowly down on the channel uh traffic up
on the bridge is moving along and the
ship is just progressing slowly down the
channel so ship's still moving at this
time and then we see the power come back
on so you see the lights come back on so
she is able to get power back on at this
moment sorry it's buffering here so you
got power now coming back on she once
again should have propulsion she should
be making weight now when you lose power
on a ship is the worst feeling in the
world everything goes quiet goes dark
now you start seeing black smoke coming
out of the port funnel so she is beling
black smoke at this time you can see it
coming out right here so this indicates
obviously an engine problem now what are
they doing at this point they may be
backing down at this moment trying to
stop uh their forward progress now the
problem with backing down on a ship is
that is single prop and what's going to
happen is when you try to back down the
ship is going to start careening it's
going to start kind of pitching around
and what happens here based on the track
line that I saw on marine traffic is the
ship starts to go across the channel she
was basically in the middle of the
channel coming out right down in the
middle and now she's kening toward the
right side notice more black smoke
coming out I saw a helicopter image this
morning that showed that the port side
anchor had been dropped so what you
would want to do is try to arrest the
forward Mo movement of the vessel the
problem with this whole scenario is
this if you start backing down on the
ship it's going to start twisting uh if
you just kept the ship going stop the
propeller and use the rudder you would
have some control but now the vessel is
starting to Veer out of the channel and
this is what we see the ship starts
Crossing from the north side of the
channel to the south side of the channel
and then eventually out of the channel
entirely and at the speed she's going uh
she is not able to stop her forward
progress so see the black smoke still
coming out of the the ship at this time
uh the ship now is coming out of the
channel entirely she would not have tugs
on her she would have had tugs to take
her off the birth at dundock but not
once she was underway and had propulsion
uh this ship Singapore flag Singapore
registered company uh dolly is one of
these ships that basically is leased by
the larger operating companies uh so
we're not exactly sure whose route she
was on what company she was servicing
she was out of Baltimore heading to
Columbo so she was heading down to the
Panama Canal and she was going to be
heading across the Pacific at this point
she is heading right for the pylons and
understand once you take out a pylon on
a bridge that's it these bridges are
designed to rest on top of that pylon
she's going to sideswipe it this is
going to be the worst kind of bridge
disaster in the United States since
Tampa back in the
1980s and even if you drop the anchors
which we know she drops the port anchor
according looking at the image from
helicopters the port anchor was not just
dropped but it was it was uh angling to
aft meaning that it dragged but at any
sort of speed it's not going to stop the
vessel uh she would have dropped I'm not
sure if she dropped the uh uh starban
aner that's her hitting right there you
can see the Big Splash as she hits the
piling right there there are barriers
around the pilings but not enough and
that will cause the the collapse and
just the horror of this event taking
place
here and and that is the tragedy right
there
so so that is my quick assessment based
on the video right there obviously a
loss of power uh resulted in the ship
losing control and hitting the uh Bridge
uh not a lot you can do the ship would
have been under the command of the
ship's Master there would have been a
Chesapeake Bay pilot on board to advise
the master remember the issue we had
with ever forward when it came out of
Baltimore and it was further down the
track than this we had the pilot being
distracted I don't think that's a case
here at all uh this obviously appears to
be a mechanical issue the fact that the
ship lost power at least once if not
twice it was kind of hard to see but it
may have lost power twice there
would have been uh the cause for the
ship to Corine into the bridge I will
have a further update here later on as
more comes to bear
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