Grounding at Gatún approach — integrated response, one file
How survey, class and legal ran in parallel to release a Panamax bulker in eleven days, without a separation of duty or a broken evidence chain.
A Panamax bulker under charter for grain touched bottom in soft mud at the northern approach to Gatún at 03:14 local. No pollution, no injuries. What follows is the file, from the first call to the release, at the level of specificity the parties have consented to publish.
The file was opened at 03:19 by the master. A duty surveyor was on board at 05:28. Counsel was engaged at 06:00 and OMCS Class attended at 21:00 of the same day. Conditions of class were issued at 09:00 of day two. Release from arrest with counter-security was obtained at 16:00 of day three. The vessel departed to a nominated yard on day eleven.
The point of publishing the file is not the eleven-day figure. It is that at no point in those eleven days did the surveyor's evidence, the class surveyor's recommendations, and the legal strategy have to be reconciled between three separate organisations with three separate incentives.