ALLISION AND SINKING OF OFFSHORE SUPPLY VESSEL CELESTE ANN
Executive Summary
The offshore supply vessel Celeste Ann was receiving
passengers from West Delta oil platform 73 about 20 nautical miles south of
Grand Isle, Louisiana, when the vessel allided with the platform about 0836 on
June 14, 2013. The allision punctured the hull, and the Celeste Ann
subsequently flooded and sank. All passengers and crew evacuated to another
vessel, and no one was injured.
Probable Cause
The National Transportation Safety Board determines that the
probable cause of the allision of the offshore supply vessel Celeste Ann
with West Delta 73 platform A was the inability of the junior master to
compensate for and overcome wind forces that pushed the vessel into the
platform. Contributing to the hull breach and subsequent sinking of the Celeste
Ann were underwater protrusions from the platform and open watertight doors
on board the vessel.