C2/2005M S/S HEIKKI PEURANEN, Grounding at Saimaa on 25.6.2005

S/S HEIKKI PEURANEN departed the private summer lodge located on the north-west side of Peuhkuri island on the accident day 25.6.2005. The meaning was to sail to Puumala’s Sahalahti, to where the journey would have lasted 3–4 hours.

As the journey began, there was a firewood barge called ENEA moored to the SB side of the tugboat. Persons on the cruise stayed mainly on the vessels’ deck and they were moving freely between the barge and the tugboat. The Master of the tugboat told that he was even himself on the barge when the cruise begun.

The cruise begun approximately at 16.00 and the tugboat was being manoeuvred by a person from the group. The master did not participate in the navigation at the time before accident. There was some drizzle. According to the helmsman the weather did not have influence on lookout. There was no glare.

When the pier was left behind, the course was taken to the north side of Peuhkuri island’s cape. There a turn to port was taken as the idea was to bypass western bank of the island with a moderate distance. Thereafter the tugboat would have been on the fairway to the east. The idea was to turn to port so long until the island would have been completely passed. After the first turn the helmsman asked the Master if the line was okay. The Master answered affirmatively and the cruise continued.

When they had made some time next to the Peuhkuri island’s western bank the tugboat’s bow hit a rock approximately at 16.00 hours on the west side of the island. The bow rose upwards and the tugboat heeled over to the left. In a moment the stern hit a rock and rose upwards and the tugboat stopped completely. The vessel remained still her stern uplifted and because of this the bow sunk.

Water was leaking in trough the bow cabin’s open porthole and trough the toilet, which opened straight outside. The vessel sank partly and remained on the shoal. The passengers were evacuated quickly by a pleasure boat, which was cruising nearby and the personal injuries were avoided. The tugboat was being lifted up couple some weeks later and docked for repairing.

The cause of the accident was the lack of local water area expertise outside the fairway area and erroneous visual observations. The direct reason for the sinking was the leaking of the vessel’s hull. This was caused by the open porthole and the erroneous structure of the toilet.

The investigation commission recommends that more information on regulations and experience concerning this kind of pleasure crafts should be spread out to the owners and users. Voluntary surveys and manning principles should be offered by associations and societies concerned. The investigators do want to highlight the fact that a vessel’s freeboard is only to the height of the lowest opening in the hull.

C2/2005M Report (pdf, 0.96 Mt)