MO-2001-206

On Sunday 15 April 2001, at about 2327, the liquefied petroleum gas carrier "Boral Gas" was outbound from the terminal in Papakura Channel in Manukau Harbour with 14 crew and a licensed harbour pilot on board when it grounded in soft mud on the north side of the channel. After nearly 2 hours the ship was refloated and continued its passage. There were no injuries and the ship suffered no structural damage.

The grounding resulted from the pilot losing situational awareness primarily due to 4 consecutive light beacons marking the channel being extinguished.

Safety issues identified included:

• the maintenance and monitoring regime for navigation aids in Manukau Harbour
• the configuration of the navigation aids in Manukau Harbour
• the traffic management system for Manukau Harbour
• the pilotage system for Manukau Harbour
• the adequacy of procedures for controlling liquefied petroleum gas carriers manoeuvring in Manukau Harbour
• the adequacy of current legislation for licensing and monitoring maritime pilots in New Zealand
• the breakdown of effective bridge resource management on the bridge of the Boral Gas.