There are at least two versions of the collision of the Turkish dry cargo ship "Lira" with the supports of the Kerch Bridge: the inattention of the crew, who ignored the dispatcher's instructions, or the oversight of Russian officials who allowed to sail without a pilot. The accident will not affect the construction of the bridge, but the builders are ready to sue the owner of the ship. It has already been delayed.
Causes
The reason for the collision of the Turkish dry cargo ship "Lira" with the bridge over the Kerch Strait was the absence of a pilot on the ship, reports Flash Crimea, citing a source familiar with the situation. “Rosmorport earlier made a decision to allow ships like“ Lira ”to pass through the Kerch Strait without pilotage. The clash is the result of bureaucratic carelessness, ”the source said.
Vitaly Efimov, President of the Union of Transport Workers of Russia and First Deputy Chairman of the State Duma Committee on Transport, urged to first sort things out thoroughly. However, he is already asking questions about the actions of the Turkish crew.
“We realized - we didn't realize, we need to look,” he said. - But even if they did not realize it, it means that we are talking about non-professionals. Who then allowed them on the ship, who allowed them to go to sea? I think it is necessary to make claims against those who made such decisions. " The expert also expressed confidence that the collision with the bridge pillars would be a good signal for the future for the Russian special bodies. “They will be very attentive to the current history,” he said.
The second version is that the crew of the dry cargo ship Lira, owned by Turkuaz Shihhing Corp, under the control of the captain, a Turkish citizen, repeatedly ignored the demands of the ground services to return to a normal course. The dispatchers warned the Turkish dry cargo ship about the danger, as evidenced by the transcript of the negotiations, which was at the disposal of TASS.
Judging by the transcript of the negotiations, the collision of the dry cargo ship with the pillars of the bridge under construction occurred at 23:35 on March 19. Two minutes later, the captain reported that the “chief mate was checking” the condition of the vessel. Later, the captain of the Pobeda ferry appeared on the radio. “We were passing by,“ Lyra drove between the piles, ”he said to the dispatcher.
However, according to the words Head of the Center for the Law of the Sea Vasily Gutsulyak, such "requirements" of the dispatcher are not mandatory. The final decision is made by the captain, and "the captain is ultimately responsible for everything that happens to the vessel."
“Any instructions from the traffic control service are in fact only advisory in nature. As well as in the relationship with the pilot who paves the way, the captain is free to listen to him or make an independent decision, ”Gutsulyak explained.
The expert is sure that the collision with the supports took place by accident, because "there are no kamikaze among the captains." At the same time, he recalled that 90% of all accidents at sea are related to the human factor. Emergencies can be explained by both low qualification of the crew, absent navigator, pilot, and natural reasons.
The region of the Sea of Azov is considered difficult for sailors to navigate. First, there is shallow water here. Secondly, the situation is constantly changing: now it is completely calm, now it is a big surge, which poses a serious danger. “In these conditions, it can be difficult to steer a ship and stay on course,” Gutsulyak said.
The Russian border guards have no complaints about the crew - the sailors did not violate international norms. “In the Sea of Azov, where the Lira went, there are both Russian and Ukrainian ports, and you cannot reach them from the Black Sea except through the Kerch Strait,” the press service of the FSB border department in Crimea told Komsomolskaya Pravda-Crimea ...
Effects
The head of the Center for Maritime Law does not think that a criminal offense of the participants in the state of emergency will begin. All the same, the responsibility will lie in the sphere of civil law relations. When the damage is accurately established, the circumstances of the case will become clear, most likely there will be a court. And in order to ensure the claims of the injured party, the ship can be arrested, he explained.
According to a TASS source in the maritime services, the dry cargo ship that rammed the supports of the Kerch Bridge has already been detained in Taganrog. “On the afternoon of March 20, after receiving an application for the detention of the vessel in connection with the incident, the port staff examined the Lira. Traces of fresh paint are visible on the side - they tried to hide the traces of a collision with the support. The vessel was detained by sea rules for 72 hours. Stands in Taganrog. The vessel is over 30 years old, ”he said. The source added that the availability of insurance and the possibility of receiving compensation from the owners of the dry cargo ship for damage to the bridge pillars is now being investigated.
At the same time, a TASS source in the insurance market noted that the risks on the Kerch bridge under construction were most likely not insured, therefore, payments from commercial insurers would not follow.
Citing its own sources, LifeNews notes that the damage will be estimated at tens of millions of rubles, and the incident itself will be resolved in court. The restoration of the destroyed support, according to the newspaper, can take up to several months.
The information center "Crimean Bridge" reported that the incident with the dry cargo ship will not affect the construction of a working bridge in the Kerch Strait. “Moreover, it will not have any effect on the timing of the construction of the main bridge to Crimea,” they added.
The information center also said that construction and installation work on the bridge does not interfere with navigation. Moreover, all ships passing through the Kerch-Yenikalsky canal are informed about construction work. In addition to the mandatory notification, which has been in effect since last summer, the work area is limited by special navigation signs.
The collision took place on March 19, but information about the incident appeared only now. As a result, support # 80 was destroyed. Also, two lighthouse piles were destroyed, and supports # 79 and # 81 have displacements, said the Taman Federal Highway Administration.
In a sense, the builders were lucky. After all, the cargo ship crashed into the support of not the bridge that will eventually connect the Crimea and the Krasnodar Territory, but the auxiliary one necessary for the construction of the main one. Working bridges are being laid towards each other from the side of Kerch and Tuzla Island in the direction of the fairway.
By the way, special hydraulic structures will be erected on the Kerch Bridge to protect its pillars from incidents. These works are planned in accordance with the project approved by Glavgosexpertiza back in February, so there is no need to talk about the impact of a minor accident on large-scale construction.
There are at least two versions of the collision of the Turkish dry cargo ship "Lira" with the supports of the Kerch Bridge: the inattention of the crew, who ignored the dispatcher's instructions, or the oversight of Russian officials who allowed to sail without a pilot. The accident will not affect the construction of the bridge, but the builders are ready to sue the owner of the ship. It has already been delayed.
Causes
The reason for the collision of the Turkish dry cargo ship "Lira" with the bridge over the Kerch Strait was the absence of a pilot on the ship, reports Flash Crimea, citing a source familiar with the situation. “Rosmorport earlier made a decision to allow ships like“ Lira ”to pass through the Kerch Strait without pilotage. The clash is the result of bureaucratic carelessness, ”the source said.
"Who then allowed them to board the ship, who allowed them to go to sea?"
Vitaly Efimov, President of the Union of Transport Workers of Russia and First Deputy Chairman of the State Duma Committee on Transport, urged to first sort things out thoroughly. However, he is already asking questions about the actions of the Turkish crew.
“They realized - they did not realize, you need to look,” he told the VZGLYAD newspaper. - But even if they did not realize it, it means that we are talking about non-professionals. Who then allowed them on the ship, who allowed them to go to sea? I think it is necessary to make claims against those who made such decisions. " The expert also expressed confidence that for the Russian special bodies, a collision with the bridge pillars would be a good signal for the future. “They will be very attentive to the current history,” he said.
The second version is that the crew of the Lira dry cargo ship owned by Turkuaz Shihhing Corp, under the control of a captain - a Turkish citizen, repeatedly ignored the demands of ground services to return to a normal course. The dispatchers of the Turkish dry cargo ship are about the danger, as evidenced by the transcript of the negotiations, which turned out to be at the disposal of TASS.
Lira, warning, you are on a dangerous course, change course to the left, keep course 067 deg. Between the buoys, ”said the traffic control dispatcher in the Kerch Strait, addressing the ship's captain on March 19 at 23.30.
"Lyra, change course to the left"; Lyra, captain, you are taking a dangerous course ”; "Lyra, captain, stop forward, full backward," the dispatcher continued.
But for some reason, there was no response from the captain of the Lyra, nor a change in the dangerous course.
Judging by the transcript of the negotiations, the collision of the dry cargo ship with the pillars of the bridge under construction occurred at 23.35 on March 19. Two minutes later, the captain reported that the “chief mate was checking” the condition of the vessel. Later, the captain of the Pobeda ferry appeared on the radio. “We were passing by, a Lira drove between the piles,” he told the dispatcher.
However, according to the head of the Center for Maritime Law Vasily Gutsulyak, such "requirements" of the dispatcher are not mandatory. The final decision is made by the captain, and "he is ultimately responsible for everything that happens to the ship."“Any instructions from the traffic control service are in fact only advisory in nature. As well as in the relationship with the pilot who blazes the path, the captain is free to listen to him or make an independent decision, ”Gutsulyak explained to the VZGLYAD newspaper.
The expert is sure that the collision with the supports happened by chance, because "there are no kamikaze among the captains." At the same time, he recalled that 90% of all accidents at sea are related to the human factor. Emergencies can be explained by both low qualification of the crew, absent navigator, pilot, and natural reasons.
The region of the Sea of Azov is considered difficult for sailors to navigate. First, there is shallow water here. Secondly, the situation is constantly changing: either a complete calm, or a large surge, which poses a serious danger. “In these conditions, it can be difficult to steer a ship and stay on course,” Gutsulyak said.
The Russian border guards have no complaints about the crew - the sailors did not violate international norms. “In the Sea of Azov, where the Lira went, there are both Russian and Ukrainian ports, and you cannot reach them from the Black Sea except through the Kerch Strait,” the press service of the FSB border department told Komsomolskaya Pravda-Crimea. Crimea.
Effects
The head of the Center for the Law of the Sea does not think that criminal prosecution of the participants in the state of emergency will begin. All the same, the responsibility will lie in the sphere of civil law relations. When the damage is accurately established, the circumstances of the case will become clear, most likely there will be a court. And in order to ensure the claims of the injured party, the ship can be arrested, he explained.
According to a TASS source in the maritime services, the dry cargo ship that has rammed the supports of the Kerch Bridge is already in Taganrog. “On the afternoon of March 20, after receiving an application for the detention of the vessel in connection with the incident, the port staff examined the Lira. Traces of fresh paint are visible on the side - they tried to hide the traces of a collision with the support. The vessel was detained by sea rules for 72 hours. Stands in Taganrog. The vessel is over 30 years old, ”he said. The source added that the availability of insurance and the possibility of receiving compensation from the owners of the dry cargo ship for damage to the bridge pillars is now being investigated.At the same time, a TASS source in the insurance market noted that the risks of the Kerch bridge under construction, most likely, were not insured, therefore, payments from commercial insurers would not follow.
Citing its own sources, LifeNews notes that the damage will be estimated at tens of millions of rubles, and the incident itself will be resolved in court. The restoration of the destroyed support, according to the newspaper, can take up to several months.
In the information center "Crimean Bridge" newspaper VZGLYAD was told that the incident with the dry cargo ship would not affect the construction of a working bridge in the Kerch Strait. “Moreover, it will not have any effect on the timing of the construction of the main bridge to Crimea,” they added.
The information center also said that construction and installation work on the bridge does not interfere with navigation. Moreover, all ships passing through the Kerch-Yenikalsky canal are informed about construction work. In addition to the mandatory notification, which has been in effect since last summer, the work area is limited by special navigation signs.
The collision took place on March 19, but information about the incident appeared only now. As a result, support No. 80 was destroyed. Two lighthouse piles were also destroyed, and supports No. 79 and No. 81 have displacements, the Department of Federal Highways "Taman" told the VZGLYAD newspaper.
In a sense, the builders were lucky. After all, a dry cargo ship does not support the bridge that will eventually connect the Crimea and the Krasnodar Territory, but an auxiliary one, necessary for the construction of the main one. Working bridges are laid towards each other from the side of Kerch and Tuzla Island in the direction of the fairway.
By the way, there are special hydraulic structures on the Kerch bridge to protect its supports from incidents. These works are planned in accordance with the project, Glavgosexpertiza back in February, so there is no need to talk about the impact of a minor accident on large-scale construction.
The emergency happened due to the "slowdown" of the crew and the order of the Ministry of Transport of the Russian Federation
The reasons for the collision of the Turkish dry-cargo ship "Lira" with the auxiliary structures of the Kerch bridge still have to be examined in detail, but now there are two versions. Some blame the ship's captain for disobeying the operator, others see the root of evil in the order of the Ministry of Transport, which allowed the ships to sail without a pilot - as a result, on Saturday, the emergency became the third in a row. Meanwhile, the Turkish dry cargo ship was detained for 72 hours - it is docked in the port of Taganrog.
As it became known yesterday evening, on March 19, the Turkish dry cargo ship Lira, owned by a Turkish company, but under the flag of Panama, was sailing along the Kerch-Yenikalsky Canal, which is used to build a highway over the Kerch Strait. One support and two savis collapsed completely, two more supports shifted.
The collision became inevitable after a Turkish vessel, at a speed of about 7 knots, unexpectedly went beyond the "green curb" in the area of the 19 buoy on the eastern side of the canal. The captain tried to slow down and return to the fairway, but to no avail. However, the damage was not too serious. According to the information center "Crimean Bridge", the repair work will not affect the delivery time of the Kerch Bridge.
"Lira" and its crew of nine people (two citizens of India, five Turks and two citizens of Georgia) were also not injured. Nevertheless, when the damage inflicted is assessed, the situation will be decided in court, the information center emphasizes.
Rosmorrechflot assured that the construction of the bridge does not interfere with navigation. All vessels passing through the Kerch-Yenikalsky Canal are aware of the work outside the fairway. In addition, the construction area was marked with special navigation signs.
By the way, the erected working bridges go towards each other from Kerch and the Tuzla island, but none of them crosses the navigable canal and will never cross. According to local media reports, the Lyra could deviate from the course due to the fact that there was no pilot on board. Indeed, according to the order of the Ministry of Transport, since 2015, ships with a draft of less than 4.5 meters or a length of less than 140 meters have been exempted from pilotage. In this regard, the collision of the ship with the supports is called the result of official carelessness. After the incident, "Kerchtraffic control" ordered "Lira" to take on board a pilot. Now the ship is in the port of Taganrog - it was detained for 72 hours
The Infocenter of the Crimean Bridge agrees with this statement of the problem. They confirmed that the absence of a pilot on board the dry cargo ship was legal, and the ship simply could not orient itself under the new navigational conditions. The influence of the order of the Ministry of Transport in the Infocenter is recognized as "negatively" affecting security in the strait.
At the same time, they remind that since the entry into force of the order, this is the third such case (before that, a river-sea-class vessel and a ferry had crashed). By the way, the cost of pilotage is not too high. And it is only $ 200.
The editor-in-chief of "Marine Bulletin" Mikhail VOYTENKO shared with "MK" his view of the incident: "The absence of a pilot on board, of course, could be the cause of an emergency. But "Lira" is a regional ship that constantly goes along this route. Therefore, the captain was able to navigate his ship on his own.
It is not clear why he began to draw close to the Crimean coast. It's hard to say now. We need to figure out whose fault in what happened is more, but, in theory, “Lear” is to blame. At the same time, rumors that the Turks could have deliberately rammed the Crimean bridge under construction is complete nonsense. They have nothing else to do. The ship belongs to a private owner who will hang himself for every extra dollar. When Turkey began to aggravate relations with Russia, its private companies continued to transport Russian goods "
By the way, the ship "Lira" earned money by transportation on domestic flights. This time the dry cargo ship transported ammonium sulfate from the Tuapse port to Taganrog.
Meanwhile, the first results of the investigation showed that the blame still lies with the captain of the vessel, who for seven minutes did not respond to warnings from the operator of the regional vessel traffic management system (RVTS) about deviation from the course.
Experts named the reasons for the collision of the Turkish dry cargo ship "Lira" with the support of the bridge under construction in the Kerch Strait. It is noted that there was no pilot on the Turkish vessel and it followed through the strait without proper guidance.
As it became known on Wednesday, the reason for the collision of the Turkuaz Shihhing Corp dry cargo ship with the support of the Kerch Bridge was the absence of a pilot on the Turkish vessel. “Rosmorport earlier made a decision to allow ships like“ Lira ”to pass through the Kerch Strait without pilotage. The clash is the result of bureaucratic carelessness, ”FlashCrimea reports, citing a source familiar with the situation.
It is also noted that the incident with the Turkish vessel will not affect the construction of the Kerch bridge in any way. “The incident with the dry cargo ship Lira, as a result of which the support of the working bridge No. 2 in the Kerch Strait was damaged (three piles of the support No. 80 of the working bridge were bent), will not affect the course and duration of the construction of this working bridge. Moreover, it will not have any effect on the timing of the construction of the main bridge to Crimea, ”TASS quotes the message of the Taman Federal Highway Administration, which is the customer of the construction.
Earlier it was reported that on March 19, a Turkish cargo ship collided with the support of a bridge under construction in the Kerch Strait. Nobody was hurt in the incident. Damage from a collision of a ship with a building structure is estimated at tens of millions of rubles.
Investigators opened a criminal case in connection with the collision of a Turkish bulk carrier with a support of a temporary bridge in the Kerch Strait. “Now the ship is detained in the port of Taganrog. The Investigative Committee opened a criminal case into the collision. In addition, the case on the legality of the vessel's actions will be considered in the Arbitration Court, ”RIA Novosti reported, citing a law enforcement source.
The incident took place on March 19. At 22.30 the ship "Lira" under the flag of Panama was moving from the Black Sea to the Sea of Azov along the Kerch Strait without a pilot at a speed of about 7 knots (about 13 km / h). It should be noted that since 2015, the Ministry of Transport has released vessels, under the parameters of which the Lira is also suitable, from pilotage in the Kerch Strait. However, this order was adopted before the bridge was actively built in the strait, and the traffic intensity increased sharply.
A violation of the rules of navigation by a dry cargo ship was recorded by the traffic controller in the strait.
This was reported to the captain, stressing several times that the "Lear" is on a dangerous course.
But judging by decryption During radio communications between the operator of the regional vessel traffic control system (RVTS) and the captain of the "Lira", the dry cargo ship ignored the recommendations for navigation for some time and continued to move on the same course and at the same speed.
After several minutes of admonitions by the operator, the dry cargo ship began to slow down, but the collision could not be avoided. The dry cargo ship piled on one of the supports of the auxiliary bridge, through which the goods are to be delivered for the construction of the main - Kerch - bridge. As a result, one support was destroyed, two more were partially displaced, and a number of structural elements were damaged.
After the collision, the captain of the Lyra again got in touch and said that the ship was in good order, asking permission to move on on its own. The RVTS operator, who had previously advised Lira "next time to follow with a pilot, you are not ready to follow without a pilot," insisted that the bulk carrier proceed to the anchorage area near the port of Kavkaz. After that, the ship went to its destination - Taganrog.
“On the afternoon of March 20, after receiving an application for the detention of the vessel in connection with the incident, the port staff examined the Lira.
Traces of fresh paint are visible on the side - they tried to hide the traces of a collision with the support.
The vessel was detained by sea rules for 72 hours. Stands in Taganrog. The vessel is more than 30 years old, ”said a TASS source in the region's maritime services, familiar with the situation.
As specified by the acting. Vitaly Klyuev, director of the department of state policy in the field of sea and river transport of the Ministry of Transport of the Russian Federation, the existing legislation gives the seaport captain the right to detain a ship and / or cargo in the port at the request of any interested person "for security purposes for a period not exceeding 72 hours." This is a widespread world practice, noted Klyuev. “Within 72 hours, the person concerned must in court - that is, through the court - present his claims to the ship owner. And already the court decides the further fate of the detained vessel. In particular, he can arrest him for security purposes. If the court decides to arrest, the seaport captain will ensure the court's decision, not letting the ship out of the seaport. I would like to emphasize once again that this is a common practice of a seaport captain, ”Klyuev said.
Now the possibility of receiving compensation for damage from the owners of the dry cargo ship is being investigated. At the same time, the risks during the construction of the bridge across the Kerch Strait were not insured, reports FlashCrimea.
Nevertheless, the incident will not prevent the construction of the working bridge from being completed on time. It will not affect the timing of the delivery of the main bridge to the Crimea. This was reported in the department of federal highways "Taman".
“Vessels passing through the Kerch-Yenikalsky canal have been informed about work in the water area outside the fairway. In addition to the mandatory notification, in force since the summer of 2015, the construction work area is limited by special navigation signs, the department said. - The front of the work does not affect the shipping zone - the Kerch-Yenikalsky canal, through which ships pass from the Black Sea to the Azov and back. The fairway will remain free for the passage of ships throughout the construction, except for a short period of time in the future, when technological operations will be carried out to install the arches of the navigable span. "
At the same time, the Kerch bridge itself is supposed to be protected from a possible repetition of such incidents. The supports of the navigable span of the main bridge, according to the project, will be protected from possible bulk of ships by special hydraulic structures - bollards. They will be built from a metal sheet pile with stone filling and a reinforced concrete head, the department explained.
The fate of the ill-fated dry cargo ship is still unknown. However,
vague not only the future, but also the past of the ship.
Initially, it was reported that the Lira dry cargo ship, which collided with the support of a working bridge under construction in the Kerch Strait, belongs to the Turkish company Turkuaz Shipping Corp. However, this turned out not to be the case.
“The vessel is not currently under our control or in the possession of our company. Therefore, we are not responsible for this vessel and do not have any information regarding Lira, ”Ibrahim Erol, one of the founders of Turkuaz Yacht & Ship Services Co Ltd, told Gazeta.Ru.
According to the portal Shipspotting.com,
in 2010, Lira belonged to Turkuaz Shipping Corp, but the management company at that time was Yugreftransflot JSC (YURTF), registered in Sevastopol.
Gazeta.Ru contacted the Yugreftransflot company, and they explained that the ship was indeed once under their control, but at the moment it belongs to the Turks. “We have handed him over to other hands a long time ago and are not following his fate,” Yugreftransflot told Gazeta.Ru with noticeable relief.
From 2010 to the present, the vessel has been owned by Voda shipping with headquarters in Istanbul. The Gazeta.Ru company explained that the management was not there and the employees could not comment on the incident without their approval.
