NTSB: Inaccurate Stability Instructions, Ice Accumulation Led to Fatal Sinking of F/V Scandies Rose

gCaptain ^ | June 29, 2021 | Mike Schuler

[artichokegrower]

The National Transportation Safety Board has determined probable cause and issued seven safety recommendations related to the deadly 2019 New Year’s Eve sinking of the fishing vessel Scandies Rose resulting in the deaths of five crew members.

[artichokegrower]

According to the NTSB, the Scandies Rose likely accumulated between 6 and 15 inches of ice on surfaces exposed to wind and icing before capsizing.

That is a lot of weight

[Blood of Tyrants]

That’s why sailors were sent out to do the grunt work of chipping ice off the boat.

[ProtectOurFreedom]

“That is a lot of weight”

I’ll say. With that much ice, would anything mechanical work?

[Sequoyah101]

Was there someone else on board who was supposed to do that job?

[ProtectOurFreedom]

The investigation found that although the crew loaded the Scandies Rose per the stability instructions on board, the instructions were inaccurate and, as a result, the vessel did not meet regulatory stability criteria and was more susceptible to capsizing.

I wonder who wrote the stability instructions and how they were inaccurate.

...the NTSB has also found that many vessels do not have proper life-saving equipment, such as flotation devices and operational search-and-rescue locator devices...The safety recommendations seek ...requiring personal locator beacons for every member of a vessel’s crew

It's astonishing that crew members don't have (or maybe won't wear) locator beacons.

[Sequoyah101]

In that water they are just for body recovery.

[Ol' Dan Tucker]

I wonder who wrote the stability instructions and how they were inaccurate.

As I recall, the boat had undergone a retrofit that added weight above the waterline.

The safety instructions dictate how much of a load can be carried without compromising the stability, i.e.: resistance to capsizing.

These are supposed to be updated anytime a major change is made to the boat. This were never done.

They were carrying more crab pots than they should have, which made the boat more unstable. Then, when they encountered freezing conditions, enough ice accumulated that it made the boat top-heavy.

At that point, it didn't take much to cause the boat to roll over on its side, then eventually, upside-down.

[Ol' Dan Tucker]

I wonder who wrote the stability instructions and how they were inaccurate.

The safety instructions dictate how much of a load can be carried without compromising the stability, i.e.: resistance to capsizing.

The safety instructions dictate how many crab pots they could carry. The previous safety instructions underestimated the weight of the pots. Even if they carried the correct number of pots, because they were heavier, this put more weight above the waterline.

The previous calculations used an inaccurate drawing of the boat. Once an accurate model of the boat was used in calculations, it was found that the boat would be more susceptible to wind-induced rolling.

When they encountered freezing conditions, enough ice accumulated that it made the boat top-heavy.

At that point, it didn't take much to cause the boat to roll over on its side, then eventually, upside-down.

All the details cann be found in the USCG Stability Analysis report.

[ProtectOurFreedom]

It sounds like the perfect storm of mistakes.

[Geostorm]

In the Perfect Storm, the Andrea Gail, also had above the waterline additions of weight that may have led to a capsize. The sailboat Albatross was modified above the waterline by its then owner author Ernest Gann. It was then sold to a couple who used it as a traveling classroom and it capsized. This was in the movie White Squall.

[oldasrocks]

Guess they should have installed solar panels to melt the ice.

[VTenigma]

If you are not in a survival suit within one minute your chances of survival in those conditions are nil a beacon ain’t gunna matter. Even in a survival suit in those conditions your lifespan is about 30 minutes.

[Blood of Tyrants]

It’s the job of the captain or first mate to assign the task. It’s something that really shouldn’t be neglected at any time. But I suspect that the ice built up in the lobster traps where it is really difficult to chip away.