Report into the grounding of the cruise ship Hamburg

The Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) has published a report on the grounding of the cruise ship Hamburg in the Sound of Mull in May 2015.

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/hamburg-report-published.

The conclusions made are that:
i) Hamburg grounded on the charted New Rocks shoal because the bridge team did not recognise that their vessel was approaching the shoal, which is marked by a buoy, from an unsafe direction.
ii) Insufficient attention was being paid to the conduct of navigation on Hamburg.
iii) Hamburg’s bridge team failed to operate in a structured manner either before or after the grounding. Specifically:
• The individuals on the bridge were working in isolation, with no recognition of their individual responsibilities, and were, therefore, unable to provide the master with the assistance he required to maintain his situational awareness.
• No actions or decisions taken at any stage on Hamburg’s bridge, before or following the grounding, were questioned by any member of the bridge team.
• As a result of poor communication, the bridge team were unable to respond effectively to the challenges resulting from the developing traffic situation in their approach to the New Rocks shoal.
iv) Once Hamburg entered the Sound of Mull there were insufficient personnel on the bridge, even had their tasks been clearly specified, for the master to maintain situational awareness.
v) The master did not demand a high standard of navigational practices from his officers.