Collision between Global Peace and Tom Tough

Executive summary

On the evening of 24 January 2006 Global Peace entered Gladstone harbour for the transit to the Clinton Coal Terminal. The plan was for the ship to berth at Clinton number three berth with the assistance of three harbour tugs.

As the ship was approaching the berth, the pilot ordered all three tugs to stop pushing and to lay alongside. The master of the aft tug, Tom Tough, laid the tug alongside the ship, with the tug at an angle of about 15 degrees to the ship's side. The tug's bow was in line with the front of the ship's accommodation.

At about 2354, Tom Tough's starboard main engine unexpectedly shutdown, and the tug's stern swung sharply to starboard. The tug's starboard quarter made heavy contact with the ship, puncturing the ship's shell plating in way of the port heavy fuel oil tank. Oil immediately began to flow into the harbour.

The investigation found that a crack in the tug's starboard main engine clutch oil discharge pipe resulted in the system being emptied of oil. The resultant loss of system pressure activated the engine shutdown.

The report identifies a number of contributing factors and makes recommendations to address them.