The only specialised marine publication in Oceania that focuses on the maritime industry, from super yachts to small craft to large commercial ships, including coastal shipping, tugs, tow boats, barges, ferries, tourist, sport-fishing craft
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MNZ INCIDENT REPORTS CONTINUED T3, tourist jetboat, 5.5m August 24, Arthurs Point, Lake Wakatipu, near miss/close quarters T7 was operating a standard trip. A mechanic in T3 was undertaking some testing in the area of Big Beach. T7 radioed T3 to advise they were departing Tuckers Beach and heading upstream. T7 agreed with a request from T3 to depart downstream, turn around above the second gorge and return to his starting point before T7 exited the gorge. At Slope Rock, T7 advised T3 she would head back upstream. The two vessels met inside the second gorge. T3 continued to travel downstream for 15-18 seconds before attempting to turn around, causing the two boats to come into visual contact. Spirit of Resolution, cargo ship, 96m August 25, 20 miles north of New Plymouth, equipment failure The turbocharger broke down. The ship headed for New Plymouth at reduced revs where a tug met her on arrival. Engineers were standing by. K-Jet 7, tourist jetboat, 7.5m August 27, Lake Wakatipu, equipment failure The water pump belt came off number one engine while the boat was on the Frankton Arm, just after the Narrows. The alarm came on and the engine was shut off. The passengers were transferred to another boat to continue their trip. Jet Raider, passenger ferry, 37m August 27, Motuihe Channel, Hauraki Gulf, explosion/fire At 1130 the Jet Raider was outbound to Waiheke Island when a loud bang was heard, followed by several vessel alarms sounding. The engineer observed flames on the CCTV coming from the base of the starboard engine. He went to the engineroom entrance and saw smoke coming from the exhaust system and breathers. He reported back to the master and they decided to start fire-fighting procedures. The engineroom was shut down and the fire suppression system activated. Other company vessels and Auckland Maritime Radio were alerted. The passengers were transferred to the Starflyte. Crew monitored the engineroom until firemen arrived on a Police vessel and found the fire was out. A tug towed her back to Auckland. Compass Rose, fishing vessel, 12.25m August 25, Port Taranaki, equipment failure/contact The skipper was preparing to berth at the main breakwater but could not make the gearchange to go astern or neutral, as the outside to for'ard helm Morse cable had become solid. The skipper then tried for'ard helm, to no avail, shut down the engine and raised the alarm. The FV Aquila had her engine pushing ahead while unloading which slowed the impact of the Compass Rose. The bow rail of the Compass Rose was slightly damaged and there was minor paint damage to both vessels. Santa Regina, ferry, 133m September 4, Picton, contact The mooring lines were let go, but as the ferry has a small amount of astern pitch at zero she started going astern. Realised did not have bridge control of the engines and before they could put out mooring lines or regain bridge control the ship touched the shore stern ramp. There was no damage. Lion New Zealand, charter yacht, 23.8m September 4, Bay of Islands, grounding The yacht ran aground at 1630 off Poroporo Island with 17 people on board while racing in the Lion New Zealand regatta. The crew managed to free her 15 minutes later and anchored in Paradise Bay. One person dived in to inspect the hull and reported minor cosmetic damage to the bottom of the keel and some antifoul missing. Hansa Bremen, reefer, 156.8m September 4, Port of Tauranga, equipment failure The No. 2 crane was lifting a cage of four pallets of kiwifruit into the second hold when the crane operator felt a jolt and stopped the lift. One of the cranes sheaves had collapsed, causing the wire to jump and start fraying. A shore crane was used to continue loading. Spirit of Resolution, cargo ship, 96m September 4, Cook Strait, equipment failure The engineers told the bridge an indicator cock on the main engine was leaking and should be changed at the first opportunity. There was no other shipping traffic evident and the conditions were favourable. The main engine was shut down at 1738, the indicator cock changed and the engine restarted at 1808. The master informed Maritime Radio and she continued to Lyttelton. K-Jet 8, tourist jetboat, 6.5m September 6, upper Kawarau River, equipment failure The K-Jet 8 was travelling upstream on the Kawarau River when she started to make a "rumbling" noise and a vibration was noticeable from the jet unit. The workshop was contacted via radio and another boat was sent to assist. The passengers were transferred over and continued with the trip. The K-Jet 8 was driven back to the workshop, where it was discovered the main jet unit bearing had caused the noise and vibration and was replaced. Tautane, fishing charter boat, 14.8m September 7, Queen Charlotte Sound, grounding The Tautane was passing through an area known locally as The Gap off Long Island when she hit a submerged rock and remained fast for 10 minutes. WH Parr, tug, 20.9m September 9, Port Nelson, contact The crew was passing the towrope to the Merkur Sky on her starboard shoulder when the two vessels came together. The tug ended up under the flare of the bow. The tug touched the side of the ship and the top of the mast was bent sideways and the radar dome damaged. The Merkur Sky received some paint scrapes. Santa Regina, ferry, 133m September 10, Wellington, near miss/close quarters The Santa Regina left the berth and sounded a blast on the whistle. When she was near the end of Glasgow Wharf the pilot boat looked to try crossing ahead unsafely. Five 80 Professional Skipper November/December 2011 short blasts were sounded and the boat stopped. Jet 2, tourist jetboat, 6m September 10, Kaituna River, Te Puke, grounding The Jet 2 was heading upstream with two passengers when the skipper saw another boat fishtailing towards him. The Jet 2 was on the right side of the river, the other in the middle. The skipper applied full reverse and headed for the right-hand bank. The other boat fishtailed past and the Jet 2 ended up in a left-hand spin with the stern beaching on the bank. The passengers on the other boat looked back but their boat continued downstream at her original speed. Amaltal Apollo, fishing trawler, 42.75m September 11, Hokitika Trench, power failure The power to the cooling pump to the main engine failed. The alarm system failed, causing the main engine to overheat. She lost power and drifted sou'sou'east. The engineers were unable to repair the problem. She picked up a tow back to port from the Rehua and then the Galatea. Straitsman, ro-ro passenger ship, 124.9m September 11, Tory Channel, equipment failure The exhaust bellows on the starboard main engine fractured, resulting in increased exhaust valve temperatures. Power to the engine was reduced to 30 percent and the Straitsman berthed in Picton without incident. Temporary repairs were made and the engine's maximum load was limited to 55 percent until a full repair was made and/or the bellows replaced. Coastal Carrier, non-passenger vessel, 52.65m September 14, Jellicoe C Wharf, Auckland, person overboard The engineer climbed outside the safety rail to tighten a bolt and slipped into the water. The man overboard rescue procedure was activated, the engineer was retrieved and he returned to duty shortly after. Flying Kiwi 2, tourist vessel, 9.5m September 15, Paihia, hit submerged object The boat hit a submerged object, which caused the propulsion to fail. The crew set the anchor and called for a tow. The propeller and outdrive were damaged. Amaltal Mariner, fishing trawler, 34m September 15, Lyttelton Harbour, equipment failure The pilot had boarded in preparation for drydocking the vessel with tug assistance. The main engine was run up and after 10 minutes an alarm sounded. The chief engineer investigated and found smoke coming from the main engine, which was promptly shut down. On initial investigation it appeared that one of the liners had cracked. Florence Nightingale IV, fishing vessel, 18.3m September 20, Tom Bowling Bay, near miss/close quarters The skipper observed two vessels dead ahead at 3.5 miles on the radar roughly half a mile apart, travelling at speed in the same direction. About half a mile had passed and they were on the same bearing and moving fast. The skipper altered course to starboard 30° and expected the oncoming vessel to do the same, but instead they turned toward him to port and were less than two miles away. The skipper altered course another 30° to starboard. His port hand light would have been easily visible and a crossing situation was evident. At less than half a nautical mile the skipper aborted his duties as stand-on vessel, took all way off, signalled five short light flashes with the spotlights, put the engines astern and stopped. One of the other vessels stayed not far on his port side while the other shone a spotlight directly at him, causing a partial lack of vision, then crossed in front of the Florence Nightingale, passing the bow from the skipper's port side. Ngahue, tug, 31.8m September 21, Wellington Harbour, contact While making fast on the shoulder in preparation for towage, the master of the Ngahue misjudged the flare of the bow and the tug's superstructure contacted the ship's side, bending the railings. Discovery II, tourist jetboat, 6m September 23, upper Shotover River, propulsion failure The Discovery II was travelling downstream with 11 passengers on board at about 40kph when an engine failed. Several attempts to restart failed and she floated about 20m downstream. The driver jumped ashore with the bowline, pulled the vessel ashore and unloaded the passengers. There was no damage or injuries. The passengers were transferred to another vessel. A new distributor was fitted to the Discovery II and she returned to base. K-Jet 8, tourist jetboat, 6.5m September 26, Lake Wakatipu, propulsion failure The K-Jet 8 was travelling down the Frankton Arm when the motor died after performing a spin. The passengers were transferred to another boat and continued the trip. The K-Jet 8 was jump-started from another battery and driven back to the workshop. The battery was faulty and was replaced. Stolt Violet, chemical tanker, 114m September 27, Timaru, propulsion failure During her initial entrance to the harbour the bridge requested astern propulsion but the engine repeatedly failed to start. The crew stood by to let go her starboard anchor. The main engine fired but would not go more than dead slow astern, even when full was ordered. The anchor was let go and held at one shackle in the water. The Stolt Violet was successfully berthed without further incident. K-Jet 8, tourist jetboat, 6.5m September 28, Lake Wakatipu, equipment failure The jetboat was travelling down the Frankton Arm when a knocking noise developed. The engine was shut down and the skipper radioed for assistance. Another K-Jet vessel picked up the passengers and continued on the trip. The K-Jet 8 was towed back to the workshop, where a pushrod was found to have punched through a rocker arm.