191 F. Supp. 618 | E.D. La. | 1961
On the early morning of October 29, 1958, the fishing vessel Vivian Lee, eastbound in the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway near New Orleans, cut across the bows of two westbound tugs, the Tee Mae and the Jessie J., striking both before ramming into the bank on her own left-hand side of the waterway. In these proceedings the owners of the Vivian Lee sue for her damages.
The Tee Mae was a steel push-type tug, 47 feet long and 17 feet wide, powered by two 165-horsepower engines. She carried a crew of two. The Jessie J. was a model bow steel tug, 51 feet long and 17 feet wide, powered by two engines developing 600 horsepower. She also had two in her crew. The Vivian Lee was a wooden fishing vessel, 55 feet by 18 feet. Her power is not disclosed, but her speed at full ahead is 10 MPH.
At the time of the collision the Jessie J. and the Tee Mae were made up together, side by side, with both showing all required running lights. Because of her superior power, the navigation of the two vessels was controlled by the Jessie J., although the engines of the Tee Mae were being used and the captain of the Tee Mae was in her wheelhouse to assist in the navigation of the two vessels if required. The night was dark and, while there is some dispute as to visibility, the navigators of all vessels testified that they were able to see the lights of traffic in, as well as the banks of, the waterway without difficulty. The collision occurred in a straight reach of the channel, the navigable portion of which is approximately 200 feet wide.
When the Jessie J. first sighted the Vivian Lee, both vessels were on their proper, or right, side of the narrow channel,
At the time of the collision, an inexperienced 16-year-old boy was at the wheel of the Vivian Lee. He was the only person in the wheelhouse, her skipper being in his room preparing for bed. The young man at the wheel of the Vivian Lee was apparently confused on seeing the lights of the Jessie J. and the Tee Mae coming toward him. Yet he did nothing but watch them until a few seconds before the collision when he called his brother, the captain of the Vivian Lee. When the captain arrived in the wheelhouse, the vessels were only 40 to 50 feet apart and collision was inevitable. Captain Peed testified that it was he who gave the Vivian Lee hard left rudder. He stated that when he came in the wheelhouse the Jessie J. and the Tee Mae were in the middle of the waterway favoring the south side. As stated above, however, the Jessie J. and the Tee Mae were already aground on the extreme north side of the waterway. It is apparent that, at the time Captain Peed came into the wheelhouse, the Vivian Lee was already under hard left rudder and that she continued under hard left rudder for the remaining 40 to 50 feet before collision.
The faults of the Vivian Lee run the gamut. She was in the inexperienced hands of an incompetent young man who admittedly failed to hold his vessel to his own right-hand side of the channel,
Since the faults of the Vivian Lee are so gross and since they fully account for the collision, the navigation of the Jessie J. and the Tee Mae need not be narrowly scrutinized.
Here, however, the only confusion was on the Vivian Lee. When the navigators of the Jessie J. and the Tee Mae saw the Vivian Lee coming across the channel, they proceeded to stop their vessels by grounding them on their extreme right-hand side. It is true that the confusion on the Vivian Lee was probably caused by the make-up of the two vessels. Whether a more experienced helmsman, on seeing the lights of these two vessels, would have appreciated the situation is beside the point. Here the helmsman of the Vivian Lee admittedly did not know what was coming. Yet he proceeded on, full speed ahead without signalling or an
Under the circumstances, responsibility for this collision must be placed on the Vivian Lee, and any fault v/hich may rest on the Jessie J. or the Tee Mae must be held to be noncontributing.
Judgment accordingly.
. 33 U.S.C.A. § 210, Art. 25, Inland Rules.
. 33 U.S.C.A. § 210, Art. 25, Inland Rules.
. 33 U.S.C.A. § 203, Art. 18, Rule I, Inland Rules.
. 33 U.S.C.A. § 203, Art. 18, Rule III, Inland Rules.
. The New York, 175 U.S. 187, 201, 207, 20 S.Ct. 67, 44 L.Ed. 126.
. The City of New York, 147 U.S. 72, 85, 13 S.Ct. 211, 37 L.Ed. 84; Pure Oil Company v. Jack Neilson, Inc., D.C.E.D. La., 135 F.Supp. 786, 789.
. The Great Republic, 23 Wall. 20, 90 U.S. 20, 23 LJM. 55; Compania De Maderas, etc. v. The Queenston Heights, 5 Cir., 220 F.2d 120; Pure Oil Company v. Jack Neilson, Inc., supra, 135 F.Supp. 789.