 | This article is missing information about investigations and laws following ship collisions. (September 2010) |
| Admiralty law |
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| History |
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| Contract of carriage/Charterparty |
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Ship collision is a type of maritime incident, a violent encounter involving moving ships. While the standard definition of collision involves more than one moving ship, and an engagement between a ship and a motionless object is formally known as "allision", in practice the word "collision" is usually used to describe also the situation where a moving ship hits a stationary ship or a fixed object such as a bridge.[1]
Ship collisions are of particular importance in marine accidents. Some reasons for the latter are:
- The loss of human life.
- The environmental impact of oil spills, especially where large tanker ships are involved.
- Financial consequences to local communities close to the accident.
- The financial consequences to shipowners, due to ship loss or penalties.
- Damage to coastal or off-shore infrastructure, for example collision with bridges.
As sea lanes are getting more congested and ship speeds higher, there is a significant possibility that a ship may experience an important accident during her lifetime. Higher speeds may cause larger operational loads, like slamming, or excessively severe loads, for example during a collision. Denser sea routes increase the probability of an accident—in particular a collision—involving ships or ships and shore or offshore structures.[citation needed]
Almost 27% of ship collisions occur near coasts and 22% at narrow channels.[2] This is usually due to disregarding best practices and regulations by navigation officers and masters. In addition, the IMO guidelines for voyage planning are not always followed. Violations are usually associated with not maintaining a safe speed, overtaking, or miscommunication with the pilot.[3]
- ^ Healy & Sweeney 1991, p. 359.
- ^ Karahalios, Hristos (1 March 2014). "The contribution of risk management in ship management: The case of ship collision". Safety Science. 63: 104–114. doi:10.1016/j.ssci.2013.11.004.
- ^ Karahalios, Hristos (2019). Risk Analysis of Ship Operations: Research and Case Studies of Shipboard Accidents. Independently Published. ISBN 978-1-7907-9149-1.[page needed][self-published source?]