A giant cargo ship ran aground on a remote Highland shoreline after the officer on watch drank nearly a pint of rum, investigators have found.
The 7,500 tonne Lysblink Seaways had to be scrapped after it hit rocks near Kilchoan on the Ardnamurchan Peninsula on February 18 this year.
Investigators from the Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) found that the ship’s chief officer “lost situational awareness” because of alcohol, causing the 400ft vessel to go off course in the Sound of Mull.
Lysblink spent nearly two days on the rocks before unexpectedly refloating itself, having spilled 25 tonnes of marine gas oil into the water from a punctured fuel tank.
Investigators found that the chief officer – a 36-year-old Russian with three years experience on the vessel – had made a private phone call while off-duty in his cabin which caused him “anxiety” and had then consumed about half a litre of rum.
He then took up watch at midnight with no other lookout on the bridge.
The ship ran aground just after 2.30am after a number of navigational errors were made as the boat passed through the narrow channel.
The MAIB found a catalogue of errors including having no lookout on the bridge, the alarm system being switched off and shortcomings in safety on board the ship despite a change of owner.
Deck officers then undertook breath alcohol tests and found the chief officer’s breath alcohol reading at 2.71mg.
The ship’s owners DFDS A/S of Copenhagen operate a zero tolerance policy on alcohol on their boat.
However, investigators found a store aboard containing a stock of spirits, beer and wine, while a number of empty bottles were also found which the MAIB suggested “indicated significant levels of alcohol consumption” by the crew.
They concluded that there was “systemic non-compliance” with safety rules around alcohol aboard Lysblink Seaways.