Questions about ships’ collision linger
TOKYO — Days after a fatal collision between a U.S. Navy destroyer and a merchant container ship, little information has emerged to explain how it could have happened. As the families of seven American sailors mourn their losses, here’s a look at what we know, and what we don’t:
Experts generally agree that the Philippine-flagged ACX Crystal, coming from behind, tried to pass the USS Fitzgerald on the right side. Extensive damage to the destroyer’s starboard side and to the container ship’s port side suggest that, but the experts say it is too early to determine responsibility. The container ship might have failed to spot the destroyer and rammed into it, or the destroyer somehow might have made a sudden move to the right. There is also a possibility the container ship might have tried to cut in front or in back of the destroyer and accidentally slammed into its side.
Japan’s coast guard initially said the collision occurred at 2:20 a.m. Saturday; the container ship reported the crash at 2:25 a.m. But after interviewing the container ship’s crewmembers, the coast guard now says the collision occurred around 1:30 a.m. The U.S. Navy continues to say the collision happened at 2:20 a.m.
Knowing the timing is essential to making sense of navigation tracking records that show movements of the commercial ship but not those of the military vessel. The ACX Crystal made a sharp turn at 1:30 a.m., quickly resumed its previous heading and then made a U-turn about half an hour later. Those movements are easier to understand if they occurred immediately after the collision than if they occurred before it.
Some experts say the container ship might have continued on without clear understanding of the collision, noticed some irregularity and returned to the collision site, reporting the collision when its crew noticed the destroyer for the first time.
The 8,315-ton destroyer’s starboard side was badly damaged, with a mechanical room and two sleeping compartments destroyed and flooded. Navy officials say the ship also has a big gash on the bottom. Damage to the container ship is concentrated on its bow area, including a sharp horizontal cut across it.
Two possible causes are a radar failure or negligence by a night watchman — on either ship or both — that might have caused a delay or failure to spot the other ship. Every ship is equipped with radar or another electronic ship-tracking device to alert against close encounters, and crewmembers on watch duty provide visual observation. U.S. Navy Vice Adm. Joseph Aucoin said an unspecified number of sailors were on watch duty the night of the collision. The gray paint of the destroyer blends into the darkness and makes it harder to spot at night.
Experts say it could have been a lack of communication between the two ships, or a misunderstanding of the situation as to who should have the right of way. Unlike cars on highways, ships encounter each other from all directions, and confusion can lead to a wrong decision on which side is “give-way” or “stand-on.” Under maritime traffic rules, the ship on the right — in this case, the container ship — gets to proceed, and the one to the left is the “give-way” ship.