NTSB issues report on barge sinking

Barges Nash (left) and Kenny under tow on the afternoon of the accident. The Nash is heeled to its starboard side

JUNE 26, 2015 — The National Transportation Safety Board has issued its report on the June 8, 2014 sinking of the tank barge Nash, which was under tow, along with barge Kenny by the towing vessel Calvin at the time of the incident.

In its executive summary, the NTSB notes that both barges were fully loaded with liquid magnesium chloride and being towed from Guerrero Negro, Mexico, to British Columbia, Canada, when the Nash began to list noticeably to its starboard side about 1145 on June 8, 2014.

Listing and trimming by the stern increased over the next six hours, and the U.S. Coast Guard directed the Calvin captain to tow the Nash to a nearby anchorage. About 1805, the Nash sank stern first in 240 feet of water, about 3 nautical miles west of Point Conception, California. About a week after the sinking, a salvage team partially refloated the Nash and towed it to its disposal location about 17 nautical miles from shore.

Probable Cause

The National Transportation Safety Board determines that the probable cause of the sinking of tank barge Nash was flooding of the aft starboard side void tank. The mechanism for entry of flooding water to this tank could not be determined because the barge was not salvaged and was not available for examination after it sank.

Read the full report HERE