Captain responsible for ferry collision

While luckily nobody was injured in the accident, the damage to the Urd is considerable, as the bulbous bow of Nils Holgersson ripped a large hole in the other boat’s outer skin and caused a crack over 2m long.

Visibility was not a problem according to the testimony of both witnesses and officials, and the ship’s records examined by the maritime police showed no technical defect.

The difficulty, it seems, revolved around the setting of the thrusters. When in the open sea, the propeller nacelles are set so they can only be rotated up to 70 degrees for safety reasons. While in this operational mode, it is not possible to turn the drive completely around.

So it appears that the captain had ‘sea mode’ on the drive, and was therefore unable to initiate the obvious reverse manoeuvre – leaving the Nils Holgersson heading directly to the ferry moored at Pier Three. Criminal proceedings have been instituted against the captain for endangering shipping.

TT Line told TMS reporter Tom Todd that the cargo room of the Urd was flooded in the accident and one trailer on upper deck and 14 trucks were damaged. However, things are moving, and the cargo has now been safely unloaded and the Urd will soon be leaving Travemünde for FAYARD in Odense Denmark – the repairs should be completed in about two weeks.

Scandlines told TMS that the Nils Holgersson was damaged only slightly and has gone onto Sweden’s Oresund Shipyard in Landskrona for repairs to bow and bulbous bow.