Casualty Investigation Deems 2011 Ship Sinking as 'Tragic and Avoidable'
Key issues:
Swanland sank after only 17 minutes following the catastrophic failure of the midships section of her hull. Only two of the vessel’s eight crew survived.
The catastrophic failure of the hull was almost certainly due to compressive forces induced by a combination of the uneven distribution of the vessel’s limestone cargo and the rough to very rough seas experienced.
The limestone cargo was a high density cargo which had been loaded in effectively a single pile towards the centre of the hold. Insufficient loading guidance was held on board; nonetheless the way the cargo was distributed in the hold was not best practice.
Swanland was 34 years old and was nearing the end of her time in service. However, although the vessel continued to comply with the rules of her classification society, there had been a lack of focus during the vessel’s final surveys and a lack of investment in on board maintenance.
The vessel’s structure is likely to have been weakened since the last intermediate survey due the carriage of corrosive (particularly road salt) and abrasive cargoes.
Like many general cargo ships, Swanland carried solid bulk cargoes, including high density cargoes, but the vessel was not safeguarded by regulation and classification society rules to the same degree as vessels classified as bulk carriers.
Many owners of general cargo ships which are used to carry bulk cargoes are possibly not aware of the need to comply with the requirements of the IMSBC Code.
that matters most
Get the latest maritime news delivered to your inbox daily.
It is likely that many of the crew did not survive because the vessel sank so quickly. However, it is possible that a few did not survive because an effective muster was not carried out and some of the lifesaving equipment carried on board might not have functioned as intended.
