| The Transportation Safety Board of Canada states that "At 0410 on 14 August 1995, the barge "Seaspan 195", attended by the tug "Jacques Cartier", capsized while loading gypsum rock alongside the self-unloader "Atlantic Superior". The barge was in the final stages of trimming when it suddenly heeled over to starboard and discharged all of its deck cargo. As the barge rolled, the port side of the cargo box hooked onto the port side of the main deck of the "Atlantic Superior". The tug/barge mate, who was on the deck of the "Atlantic Superior" when the barge capsized, had both legs trapped and sustained multiple fractures." "The "Seaspan 195" is of welded steel construction with a flat cargo deck sheathed in concrete with an asphalt overlay, raised foredeck and flat bottom plating. It has raked ends, a double-chine bilge, and is fitted with two towing skegs. The hull is subdivided by 2 longitudinal bulkheads and 4 transverse bulkheads into 15 watertight compartments. These void spaces are not used for ballast. The barge has a permanent 2.13 m-high open-topped cargo box of steel construction with smooth inboard face and exterior steel stanchions. The box had a partially open panel near amidship on the port side. The "Seaspan 195", operating as an uncrewed barge and not carrying pollutants, was not subject to inspection by Transport Canada (TC) Marine Safety. Not employed on international voyages, it did not need an assigned load line, nor was it required to comply with any regulatory stability criteria. However, the "Seaspan 195" does have both draught and load line marks." |
