Neglected Passing Plans Resulted in Towboat Collision

The National Transportation Safety Board has determined that a major barge tow collision on the Mississippi River was caused by a pilot forgetting the passing arrangements he had agreed on with another towboat, resulting in both boats being on the same side of the river. The collision occurred in the early hours of January 9, 2023, when the towboat Big D, downbound on the river, encountered the upbound towboat Carol McManus, both pushing full barge tows.

Despite agreeing to a passing arrangement on VHF radio, the two towboats ended up on the same side of the river, leading to a head-on collision that damaged 14 barges and caused an estimated $1.4 million in repair costs. The NTSB investigation found that the pilot of the Carol McManus, an experienced towboat master, had “got confused” and “forgot” about the agreement with Big D, leading to the collision.

The NTSB noted that the pilot did not show signs of impairment but emphasized the importance of repeating passing arrangement details over the radio to improve the odds of remembering it. The agency concluded that if the pilot of the Carol McManus had repeated back the proposed arrangement, he would have been more likely to correctly recall the agreement and maneuver his tow to the left descending bank, avoiding the collision.

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