Heard about this on the radio and immediately checked the website gCaptain that a coworker maintains. Aside from learning about the allision between the Cosco Busan, a container ship, and the San Francisco Bay Bridge I also learned a new word....you might have figured it out by now or you think that my spelling skills are slipping. The word allide is different than the word collision in that it is predominately used in the maritime industry to describe an incident where a moving vessel strikes a fixed structure or anchored vessel. The word collision is used in the industry when the two vessels involved were both underway.
The case of the Cosco Busan is considered an allision due to the fact that the ship was underway and the bridge was a fixed object. Without getting too deep into maritime law, the vessel that was underway at the time of the allision is generally responsible. If the vessel can prove that the stationary object (in this case, the bridge) was obstructing the navigable waterway which is usually uncommon.
From reports, the spill check out gCaptain coverage of the incident and the Coast Guard press release. The page has quite a bit of interesting information as well as more links for additional coverage. For my friends that were with us coming back at night from Alcatraz and we saw the pilot transfer in the bay, there is a good description of the pilot's duties and responsiblities.
The case of the Cosco Busan is considered an allision due to the fact that the ship was underway and the bridge was a fixed object. Without getting too deep into maritime law, the vessel that was underway at the time of the allision is generally responsible. If the vessel can prove that the stationary object (in this case, the bridge) was obstructing the navigable waterway which is usually uncommon.
From reports, the spill check out gCaptain coverage of the incident and the Coast Guard press release. The page has quite a bit of interesting information as well as more links for additional coverage. For my friends that were with us coming back at night from Alcatraz and we saw the pilot transfer in the bay, there is a good description of the pilot's duties and responsiblities.
