33.1
The "DIANA II" Incident in January 1993

As this relatively minor incident was made into a near catastrophe by the Nordic media with the visor allegedly almost lost, clarification was needed and thus the matter was also investigated by this 'Group of Experts' with the following result:
DIANA II was delivered by Meyer Werft in 1979 as forerunner and near-sister of the ESTONIA. The DIANA II as well as the VIKING SALLY (later ESTONIA) were trading in the Viking Line service between Stockholm-Mariehamn-Turku until 1990. From the chief mate Karl Ole Lindroos, who had practically been on board from the time of delivery until 1990, as well as from the mate and master Thorsten Söder, who served in this rank for many years, the following information has been received:

An inspection was carried out by the B.V. surveyor Axel Gall after commencement of repairs on 16 January 1993 and after completion of same on 17 January 1993 - see the B.V. Survey Report Enclosure 33.1.425.
Accordingly the following damage was found:

- The lug for starboard lock plunger was lost;
- the lug in centre line (the "Atlantic lock") was bent and the weld cracked;
- the lug for port side plunges was bent and the weld cracked;
- a minor crack at hinge on starboard side;
- the girder in centre line and two webs on starboard side cracked.

The following repairs were carried out by Trelleborg Industri- & Byggservice AB and their invoice with working sheets is attached as Enclosure 33.1.426.

- The lug starboard side renewed with doubling plate on the back side;
- the lug in centre line faired and re-welded; the stay above the lug renewed;
- the lug port side faired and the crack chiselled and welded;
- the crack at starboard hinge chiselled and welded;
- the cracks at the girder and the webs chiselled and welded.

In the presence of the B.V. surveyor, Captain Söder informed Sjöfarts-inspektionen Malmö - Åke Sjöblom - and invited them for survey. However, due to lack of time this was allegedly not possible and Sjöblom confirmed that the survey carried out by B.V. was sufficient and the repairs would be inspected later. Actually this was performed ca. three months later by the Safety Inspector Nilsson, according to the logbook entry.

»According to the Captain in command of the DIANA II two officers discovered the damages at sea. For some time it had been "wet" on the forward ramp and crew members at sea went down between the forward ramp and the visor to see if the packing was leaking significantly. When they went down, the damages to the visor were discovered. On arrival at Trelleborg on 16 January 1993, they had a close look while the visor was opened. Thereafter the repairs were ordered through TR-Line in Trelleborg. The captain said that the weather had been bad for a few days, 15-25 m/s high waves, and it was dark. Thus, the damages might have happened several days before the 16 January 1993. He does not know when or under what circumstances the damages were suffered. The captain advised the chief surveyor of Malmö Inspectorate about the damages on 16 January 1993 by telephone.«

The complete letter is attached as enclosure 33.1.427.

 

According to the ship's command the torn off starboard lug was lost. This is possible as first the lug hangs on the bolt of the hydraulic locking device and after opening the same it falls into the water. As noticed from the letter of the B.V. lawyer Johnsson, the repairs had already been commenced when the B.V. surveyor boarded the vessel. Thus practically neither the class nor the safety board ever saw the damage in its original condition.
The ship's command was unable to attribute the damage to a special occurrence, such as a hard blow of the sea. Therefore the TR Line inspector Griesmaier is of the opinion that the damage to the locking devices occurred over a longer period. This would be in conformity with among other things the statements of the chief mate Karl Ole Lindroos.

In summary Turbo Technik concluded:

"On the whole we do not consider it safe to run the vessel under this condition."

The complete report of Turbo Technik is attached as Enclosure 33.1.428.

 

 

33.2
The "HABIB" Visor Damage on 04.10.78

Finally attention shall be drawn to one visor damage which occurred outside the Baltic Sea area in the Western Mediterranean sea. It concerns the brand new car/passenger ferry HABIB also classed by B.V. and built for the Tunisian owners Cotunav, Tunis, for service between Tunis-Genua-Marseille by the Nobiskrug Shipyard/Rendsburg in 1978. The vessel has a length of 145.73 m, a breadth of 23.51 m and a draught of 6.16 m. The service speed is 23 kn. The bow ramp was regarded as upper extension of the collision bulkhead above the bulkhead deck and connected to the visor.
On 4 October 1978 the ferry was on voyage from Tunis to Marseille when at 01.10 hours the course was changed to the west and at 02.15 hours to 320° towards Marseille; wind: West Bft. 9-10, speed 15.8 kn. From 07.00 hours onwards they were sailing under the French coast. Around 11.00 hours it was noticed that the locking devices of the bow visor had broken and the visor was set to starboard.
The visor was lashed/secured, and the voyage was continued with reduced speed to Marseille.
The visor was temporarily closed and repaired during the following yard period. The locking device system, built and installed by MacGregor, was reinforced after the occurrence.