On Whit Saturday 2019, an accident occurred on the Elbe that shocked many sailors. The listed pilot schooner "No. 5 Elbe", which had just returned from an extensive refurbishment in Hvide Sande, Denmark, collided with a container ship. Fortunately, there were only minor injuries and the traditional ship still reached the Schwinge, where it sank at the pier.
A short time later, a video appeared on social networks which at first glance seemed to explain the situation exhaustively, but on closer inspection also raised many questions that could not be clarified without further details - such as the exact location of the incident, the events before the recording began and the lack of reaction from the freighter.
While the courts continue to investigate the question of guilt, the BSU has already derived recommendations from the events in a detailed investigation report. The report is available on the Internet by clicking on this link.
From the report:On 8 June 2019 at 13:54, a collision occurred on the Elbe near Stadersand between the Cyprus-flagged container ship "Astrosprinter" and the traditional German ship "No.5 Elbe", a former pilot schooner. The schooner was sailing under sail and had just completed a turn to return to Hamburg. After the turn, there was damage to the foresails.
While the crew was busy getting these sails under control, they neglected to change the side of the fairway to match their own direction of travel. As a result, "No.5 Elbe" first narrowly missed the oncoming "Hanna" and then collided with the "Astrosprinter".
Eight people on board the former pilot schooner, which was carrying 15 crew members and 28 passengers, suffered mostly minor injuries. As the incident progressed, No.5 ELBE was able to reach the nearby mouth of the Schwinge under its own power with the support of the DLRG boat "Kik Ut" before it ran aground shortly before the pier and sank.
The BSU believes that the main cause of this marine casualty was the ship's command's reaction to the damage to the headsails during the tack. The ship's command was only concerned with the sails and no longer with leaving the wrong side of the fairway as quickly as possible to avoid oncoming traffic. Furthermore, it should be criticised that the ship's command of the Astrosprinter neither addressed the pilot schooner by VHF during the approach nor attempted to warn her by means of sound signals.
