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Captain: No way to avoid accident PDF Print E-mail
Saturday, 26 April 2008 09:38
By This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Staff Writer

Last Updated:April 22. 2008 11:04PM
Published: April 23. 2008 3:30AM

MUSCLE SHOAL

The captain of a barge-towing tugboat testified Tuesday that everything happened too suddenly to avoid a collision with a pleasure boat on Wilson Lake in March.

Capt. Joe M. Johnson said the 32-foot pleasure boat cut into the path of the front of the two barges he was towing March 27.

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Johnson said he shined a navigation light on the vessel to try and get the attention of the operator, but to no avail.

'As soon as I shined my light on him, I knew he was headed to try and cross my bow,'Johnson said. He drew a figure during his testimony that depicted the boat traveling at about a 45-degree angle in front of the left front of the lead barge. The drawing indicated the pleasure boat was very close to the barge at the time.

Johnson's testimony was the start of a U.S. Coast Guard hearing that is part of a report the agency is making on the wreck. The accident killed Hamilton residents Mary Hood, 54, Ray Peters, 53, and Patti Jo Manley, 50, as well as 59-year-old Sheffield resident William Hill Jr.

Coast Guard Lt. Commander Eric Denley, the investigating officer in the case, said the hearing likely will last through the week.

The hearing, which is in Complex D on the Tennessee Valley Authority Reservation, will involve testimony from crew members, the owner of the tugboat, officials with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Alabama Marine Police, emergency-management workers and others.

Attorneys representing various interests will be able to question the witnesses.

The interests include the estates of some of the victims, as well as Johnson and Maryland Marine Services, which owns the tugboat.

The Coast Guard will draft a report from the information gathered at the hearing and throughout the investigation, Denley said.

That information will be forwarded to the sector commander of the Ohio Valley Coast Guard, then to the commandant of the Coast Guard, Denley said. The report will then be released to the public.

Denley said it is uncertain how long the process will take before the final report is released.

The report likely will involve more than the question of fault in the wreck. It also could include recommendations as to ways to avoid similar boating accidents in the future, Denley said.

Johnson said his tow was 670-feet long and 54 feet wide, including the tugboat itself, and carried 41,500 barrels of xylene bound for Decatur.

There were three crew members, including a relief pilot, aboard, Johnson testified.

He said conditions were dusky to dark by the time they left the Wilson Dam lock and were in Wilson Lake, and his navigation lights were on. The wreck occurred at 7:54 p.m.

Johnson said he was looking at his instruments and had his radar set at a 1.5-mile range.

'I looked back at the radar and saw a blip,'Johnson said. 'Then I looked out the port (left) side and saw a light.

'I put a light on it and noticed it was a cabin cruiser. By the time I figured out he was (moving), he was already on the barges.'

He said it took about four seconds to see the boat in the water after seeing the blip on the radar, and maybe a second to turn the light on to the vessel. The boat rolled under the barge within about three seconds after that, he said.

Johnson testified that he was traveling at 10.2 mph, and he estimates the pleasure boat was going 15 to 25 mph and didn't have navigation lights.

'There wasn't time to sound any navigation signals,'he said. 'The cruiser wouldn't have had time to respond by the time I did that.'

The front of the lead barge slants inward, so the boat rolled beneath it, Johnson said.

Johnson said he slammed the tugboat into reverse in an effort to avoid hitting the boat. He said it would have taken about one-fourth of a mile to stop. He didn't keep the tugboat gear in reverse for long, because he feared the pleasure boat would roll into a propeller. He heard the boat bump the bottom of his vessel, he said.

Johnson testified he didn't see anyone on board the pleasure boat.

Denley played a recording of Johnson contacting the Coast Guard after the wreck. In the recording, the captain said the boat looked like it was traveling at about 30 mph. He told the guard that his tow board was floating and his crew were looking around, hoping to find survivors.

Johnson has about 13 years of experience as a tugboat pilot and was splitting six-hour shifts with another pilot during the voyage, which was to last about eight or nine days, he said. His shift during the time of the wreck had started at 5:30 p.m. He said he's made this journey from Texas to Decatur about 60 times in the past five years.

Bernie Delinski can be reached at 740-5739 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .
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