New report into 2022 Brisbane River oil tanker grounding slams safety rules

Safety authorities were prevented from “adequately responding” to an 185m-long oil tanker which grounded at the Port of Brisbane due to a lack of clear rules, a report has found.

The CSC Friendship ran aground in the 2022 floods with 32,000 tonnes of petroleum on board despite repeated warnings, the ATSB has found.

A new report into the grounding of a huge oil tanker at the Port of Brisbane has found that safety authorities could not “adequately respond’’ because of a lack of clear rules.

Despite repeated warnings from the Bureau of Meteorology, the Hong Kong-flagged tanker CSC Friendship was washed from its mooring at the Ampol wharf on February 27 in 2022.

The ship, which had 32,000 tonnes of petroleum products on board, later ran aground two times and at one stage drifted near a charted hazard called Clara Rock.

Since the incident Maritime Safety Queensland has introduced guidelines to deal with any future incidents.

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) report said the 185m-long tanker was buffeted by currents in the Brisbane River which exceeded the design limits of both the mooring and the ship.

“While weather conditions exceeded those initially forecast, the associated increased safety risk to shipping and the port was foreseeable,” ATSB marine investigation manager Captain Vik Chaudhri said.

The CSC Friendship ran aground in the 2022 floods with 32,000 tonnes of petroleum on board despite repeated warnings, the ATSB has found.

“Numerous warnings from the Bureau of Meteorology provided sufficient information to identify and assess the increased likelihood of a breakaway.

“The current in the river had exceeded the operational limits of the berth and the ship’s mooring arrangements, more than 14 hours prior to the breakaway, yet the ship remained at the berth.”

The CSC Friendship was swept across the channel and 400m downstream despite deploying its anchor and two tugs quickly arriving to help.

A port pilot boarded the vessel and, about six hours after the grounding, the ship was refloated.

However, while trying to retrieve its anchor, the tanker veered across the channel and again ran ground.

The report found Maritime Safety Queensland did not have “structured or formalised risk or emergency management processes or procedures’’.

“Consequently, MSQ was unable to adequately assess and respond to the risk posed by the river conditions and current,” the report concluded.

Since then it had made significant changes to operations and systems, but the ATSB has asked for further improvements.

It also asked pilotage provider Poseidon Sea Pilots and Ampol to tighten their procedures.

“The extent of actions by all three of these key parties is encouraging,” Captain Chaudhri said.

Originally published as New report into 2022 Brisbane River oil tanker grounding slams safety rules