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Personal Injury Law News
February 19, 2009
Multiple Factors Cited in Cosco Busan Incident
The National Transportation Safety Board cited "a medically unfit pilot, an ineffective master, and poor communications between the two" yesterday as the cause of the Nov. 7, 2007, Cosco Busan container ship's striking a tower of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, causing a spill of more than 53,000 gallons of fuel oil into San Francisco Bay. The ship was being piloted out of the bay by the pilot in heavy fog, and he told investigators the ship's instruments were showing conflicting information. The board said the incident ultimately killed more than 2,500 birds and caused at least $73.5 million in damage, with $70 million attributed to the environmental cleanup. The ship sustained $2 million in damage, and the bridge sustained $1.5 million in damage.
"How a man who was taking a half-dozen impairing prescription medications got to stand on the bridge of a 68,000-ton ship and give directions to guide the vessel through a foggy bay and under a busy highway bridge is very troubling and raises a great many questions about the adequacy of the medical oversight system for mariners," said Acting NTSB Chairman Mark Rosenker. The board cited three factors: the pilot's performance degraded by "his use of impairing prescription medications," lack of a comprehensive pre-departure master/pilot exchange and ineffective communication between the pilot and the master, and the master's "ineffective oversight of the pilot's performance and the vessel's progress."
Background
On Wednesday November 7, 2007 the Cosco Busan container ship side swiped one of the western anchorages of the San Francisco Bay Bridge. The ship leaked bunker fuel oil after a gash was discovered in its port side. The 810-foot vessel was headed out of Oakland and bound for South Korea when it hit the bridge in heavy fog around 8:30 AM. The bridge did not suffer significant damage and traffic continued to flow on the span.
cosco busan ship anchored
The Cosco Busan anchored in San Francisco Bay after striking the Bay Bridge on the foggy morning of Nov. 7, 2007. Note gash in the mid section of ship. Another photo.
This is this worst spill in the area since 1996 when the Cape Mohican spilled 40,000 gallons of fuel oil into San Francisco Bay near Pier 70.
The most severe spill inside the San Francisco Bay occurred in 1971 when 900,000 gallons of oil spilled after two oil tankers collided in the fog near the Golden Gate Bridge.
Sometimes, personal injury expenses can be overwhelming, and contacting a lawyer becomes necessary.
Dealing with insurance companies can sometimes be difficult. If you are considering an injury case, contact the Houston Personal injury lawyers of the Stephens Law Firm at 713-224-0000
The Stephens Law Firm will represent people anywhere in Texas, or across the United States if the case merits it. The communities we have frequently served over the past 22 years include: Houston, Katy, Beaumont, Liberty, Richmond, Rosenberg, Wharton, Corpus-Christi, Waller, Austin, Brownsville, McAllen, Dallas, and San Antonio. We have extensive experience in the County and District Courts of Harris County, Ft Bend County, Nueces County, Wharton County, Bexar County, Liberty County, and Jefferson County.
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