Jones Act Maritime Lawyer : Houston Jones Act & Maritime Injury Lawyer & Attorney : Arnold & Itkin Law Firm : Offshore Injury, Maritime Law : Texas, Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi, Florida

A maritime accident involving a power boat with 14 people on board and a docked tugboat on the Intercoastal Waterway in St. John's County, Florida killed five people and left seven with serious injuries. The accident occurred 25 miles southeast of Jacksonville on Sunday evening.

The power boat was leaving the marina when it slammed into the tugboat. Rescue efforts were initially hampered due to ongoing construction work at the dock. Rescuers had to lay plywood sheets out to get to the victims, who were all on the power boat. The tugboat, which was registered to a St. Augustine company, F & A enterprises, was empty at the time. Three of the people injured in the maritime accident were said to be in critical condition.

Investigators are looking into a number of factors that may have caused the accident, including the speed of the power boat, lighting conditions, and whether people on the power boat were drinking at the time of the crash. The driver of the boat is said to be one of those who survived the boat accident and officials have confirmed that they will conduct toxicology tests on the driver. 

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission announced a criminal investigation into the crash. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has also announced that it will be conducting an investigation into the boat accident. Normally, the NTSB does not involve itself in boat accidents, but due to the serious injuries and multiple fatalities here, the board has decided this maritime accident merits an investigation.

Maritime Accident Claims

Maritime workers injured in an accident with another vessel, whether it is a pleasure craft or a Jones Act vessel engaged in commercial activities, may be entitled to compensation. 

If you believe you have been injured in a maritime accident, a maritime attorney can help answer any questions you may have regarding compensation. Contact an experienced maritime lawyer at Arnold & Itkin LLP for a free evaluation of your claim.

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Investigations into a massive 2008 oil spill on the Mississippi River reveal negative details about the practices at the shipping firm that owned the tugboat. The company apparently habitually used maritime workers who lacked proper licensing.

Former port captain, Jim Sellers, testified at a Coast Guard hearing in New Orleans. He explained that the company, DRD Towing, often substituted unlicensed personnel in place of qualified employees.  When the tugboat, Mel Oliver, pushed an oil barge into the path of an oncoming ship last July, apprentice mate John Bavaret was at the helm. Bavaret did not have the licensing needed to operate the tugboat, he was "filling in" for Terry Carver, the captain of the ship. Carver, according his own testimony, jumped ship a few days before the tugboat accident to pursue his girlfriend in Illinois. He asked Bavaret to take his place at the helm of the tugboat. Bavaret's inexperience and lack of qualifications for the job resulted in an accident that ended with more than 280,000 gallons of fuel spilled into the Mississippi River. According to Jim Sellers' testimony, hiring inadequately licensed crew members was a regular practice at DRD Towing. The company, which closed down in August, had previously substituted an unlicensed deckhand for an apprentice mate. According to Sellers, he tried, on many occasions, to caution his employers at DRD Towing that the practice of staffing the vessel crew with insufficiently licensed personnel could end up causing problems for the company.

Sellers' testimony is part of investigations into the accident after which the Coast Guard will recommend appropriate penalties for those responsible for the accident. The Mel Oliver - Tintamora accident resulted in no injuries or deaths. The injury-free accident can be attributed to luck rather than any foresight or efficiency on Bavaret's part. The kind of indiscriminate hiring practices going on at DRD Towing were a maritime disaster waiting to happen.

Maritime Injuries

Very often, injuries on board a vessel are the result of the negligence or recklessness of employers, who create unsafe conditions for their workers in an effort to cut costs. For instance, DRD Towing's practice of hiring unqualified workers was an attempt to cut down on overheads by hiring cheaper labor. In cases like this, maritime injury victims can claim compensation for their injuries under the Jones Act with the help of a Louisiana maritime accident lawyer.

If you've been injured in a maritime accident, contact a maritime injury attorney at Arnold & Itkin LLP for a free evaluation of your case. 

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Three seamen who died because of a lack of oxygen in a ship's compartment had failed to appreciate the possible dangers they faced, a report said. The men who were working to secure a rattling anchor chain in an enclosed space on the Viking Islay ship off the Yorkshire coast in 2007 failed to recognize the atmosphere would eventually become oxygen deficient.  According to a BBC article on the subject:

Marine Accident Investigation Branch experts recommended training changes. The marine accident experts added that the training and subsequent drills in the use of such devices "had not been sufficient to ensure the limitations of the equipment were recognised in an emergency".

And the document added: "The ship manager's company policy on entry into enclosed spaces was not clear and did not take into account scenarios that could require crews to enter confined spaces while at sea".

Gas monitoring equipment supplied to the vessel was unsuitable for ensuring safe entry into enclosed spaces, the experts concluded.

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