Word: bligh
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...exhausted and asleep, was supposed to relieve Cousins, but the third mate had told him to take his time. In any case, Hazelwood ordered Cousins to make a right turn back into the outbound lanes when the vessel reached a navigational point near Busby Island, three miles north of Bligh Reef. The captain then returned to his cabin, just 15 ft. and one stairway from the bridge, reportedly to complete his paperwork...
...told Hazelwood by phone that he was starting to turn. But the ship's course recorder shows that the Valdez did not start to change direction until seven minutes later. Next, the lookout on duty ran into the ship's pilothouse to report that a flashing red buoy near Bligh Reef, which should have been visible on the port (left) side, had been spotted on the starboard (right) side...
...pilotage endorsement," a certification from the Coast Guard that entitles a licensed officer to steer ships in certain federal waters. In 1977, when the Alaska pipeline opened, such approval was required all the way down to the entrance of Prince William Sound -- past Rocky Point, Busby Island and Bligh Reef. But since then, the rules have been liberalized several times...
...According to a report in the Anchorage Times last week, Hazelwood may have done more than just hand the ship over to an uncertified third mate, a serious enough lapse in itself. To change sea-lanes, he had set the ship on a course that pointed it toward treacherous Bligh Reef, the Times reported, then allegedly left it on autopilot without telling anyone. Thus, when the third mate realized he was headed for disaster and tried to steer the ship, he could...
...Transportation Safety Board, the accident was preceded by a series of commands that put the vessel a mile out of the shipping lanes and into harm's way. Cousins and finally Hazelwood, who had returned to the bridge, issued contradictory orders. Shortly after midnight, the tanker impaled itself on Bligh Reef, its hull torn by gashes, some thought to be 15 ft. wide. At least 240,000 bbl. of oil, equal to 10.1 million gal., poured out of the wounds...