Corpus Christi Caller Times Caller.com - Coast Guard issues letter of negligence in ship crash; pilot said he was avoiding other boat in ship channel

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Saturday, June 19, 1999

Coast Guard issues letter of negligence in ship crash; pilot said he was avoiding other boat in ship channel

By Dan Parker
Caller-Times

Coast Guard officials said a pilot operated an 800-foot tanker ship negligently when the ship crashed into an empty pier in Port Aransas Jan. 18, but the ship's pilot said he was not negligent.
   Pilot Michael Kershaw said the ship crashed because he was trying to avoid hitting a broken-down shrimp boat blocking the channel. Hitting the shrimp boat, Kershaw said, might have killed someone.
   No one was injured in the incident.
   The Coast Guard's contention of negligence came to light in documents released by the Coast Guard this week in response to a request by the Caller-Times under the Freedom of Information Act.
   The Coast Guard issued Kershaw, 57, of Corpus Christi, a letter of warning saying he operated the ship, Icaro, in a negligent manner, according to records. A Coast Guard report said Kershaw failed to properly judge the effect a strong tide had on the ship as it made a westbound turn in the Corpus Christi Ship Channel at Port Aransas.
   The Coast Guard did not take civil or criminal action largely because Kershaw had a good record and because he was "attentive to his duties" the day of the accident, said Coast Guard Lt. John Fassero.
   "He has an excellent record with the port, and he's well-respected in the port community," Fassero said.
   The letter of warning will not hamper Kershaw in his job as a pilot, but will be considered by the Coast Guard if he has an accident in the future, Fassero said.
   Kershaw said he had no choice but to slow the ship and steer it into an area of the channel where he normally would not have gone in order to avoid hitting the shrimp boat. Because the ship was going so slow, a current drove the vessel into the pier, Kershaw said.
   But Fassero said issuing the letter of warning was fair.
   "It's up to the pilot to take into account (ship) handling characteristics, weather and currents and factor that in to avoid a collision with a pier or any non-moving object," Fassero said. "If there is a collision, that in itself is evidence of negligence. . . . It's a fairly unforgiving standard, I'll admit."
   Standards are tough partly because tanker ships haul tons of crude oil, and a spill could badly damage the environment, Fassero said. The Icaro was loaded with crude oil.
   The pier was an out-of-service structure formerly used by Exxon for unloading crude oil at a tank farm on Harbor Island.
   The Port of Corpus Christi owned the pier at the time of the accident but was not using the pier for anything, said Greg Brubeck, deputy director of engineering for the port.
   A port consultant reported it probably will cost about $200,000 to remove the parts of the pier that were damaged and that replacing them would cost an estimated $400,000 to $500,000, Brubeck said. The port is seeking reimbursement from the ship's owner, he said.
   Kershaw said the pier was damaged and rendered useless by a large barge about five years ago before the Icaro struck it.
   Brubeck said the pier likely was damaged by another vessel before and definitely was damaged by age and shoaling and that the port is not entitled to the full $400,000 to $500,000 it would cost to rebuild the pier like new.



Staff writer Dan Parker can be reached at 886-3758 or by e-mail at parkerd@caller.com

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