Inspection Detail

Inspection: 311682579 - Marathon Petroleum Company

Inspection Information - Office: Charleston Area Office

Investigation Summary

On January 19, 2010, Employee #1 was working as a deckhand on a vessel named the "Tri- State." The "Tri-State" was a 3800 hp diesel fueled tugboat. It was 13 ft-7 in. long and 35 ft-5 in. wide. The tugboat had been secured to a fleet of barges that were being built along the bank of the Ohio River, at a location known as the Kenova Loaded Fleet Area. The "Tri-State" was secured to the fleet by three 2.5 in. rope mooring lines. One line was secured at the bow of the tugboat; one line was secured at the stern of the tugboat; and a third "breast line" was secured at the back of the boat. The deck hands released the bow line and the stern line but forgot to release the breast line. Because the tugboat was facing up river, once the bow line was removed, the bow began to swing away from the fleet of barges. Employee #1 realized that the breast line was still attached and radioed the pilot and other deckhands. Due to a swift current, the pilot was unable to return the bow of the boat to the fleet. The pilot backed the tugboat so the stern of the tugboat would be parallel to the fleet, to relieve tension on the mooring line so that it could be released. The bow of the tugboat continued to turn downriver. When the pilot realized that the port stern corner of the tugboat was going to make contact with a barge, he radioed to the crew to "watch the bump," which alerted the crew that hard contact was imminent and that they needed to hold on to something secure. When contact was made, Employee #1 fell over a bull rail and into the water. The bull rail was a 24-in. high wall located around the stern of the tugboat. "Man Overboard" was radioed to the pilot. He shut the engine down and sounded the general alarm. Other deckhands were able to reach Employee #1 with a life ring while holding securely to the rope of the life ring. Employee #1 was wearing a U.S. Coast Guard approved Type V work vest and was holding onto the life ring, when he was pulled underwater and under the tugboat. The breast line was cut with an axe, which allowed the tugboat to float away from the barges. A harbor boat, known as the "Map Runner," responded to assist with the rescue. The life ring surfaced and shortly thereafter Employee #1 resurfaced and was pulled onto the "Map Runner," where CPR was performed. Employee #1 died.

Keywords: BARGE, FALL, DROWN, LIFE JACKET, LOST BALANCE, BOAT, INATTENTION