The marine pilot who was guiding the Ever Forward when the container vessel ran aground in Chesapeake Bay in March 2022 has permanently surrendered his pilot licence.
Maritime Executive reports that The Maryland Board of Pilots has accepted a settlement agreement in which the local pilot surrendered his licence. The agreement brings to a close two pending matters that have been before the board regarding pilot Steven Germac’s conduct contributing to the grounding of the vessel.
In the settlement agreement, Germac “agrees, admits, and consents” to violating the statutes of his profession “by failing to use all available means to monitor the position of the Ever Forward while piloting it … and by failing to recognise the incorrect vessel position display in time to avoid the grounding”.
The Board of Pilots and Germac agreed to settle the matter after he proposed to surrender his licence and agreed that he would never reapply for one. It was agreed that additional penalties, which could have included a $2 000 fine or an official reprimand, would not be imposed on the pilot.
The two matters awaiting hearings had included a previous temporary suspension of Germac’s licence and a second disciplinary action regarding his involvement in the grounding of the vessel.
However, the settlement did not focus on the findings in the US Coast Guard report, which found that Germac had not fully used the ship’s systems, but rather a personal positioning device. Investigators found that Germac had also been distracted, talking on his cellphone, texting, and sending emails during the transit for about half of 126 minutes after the vessel left the terminal in Baltimore until it grounded. He was typing an email when the vessel failed to make a vital turn into the Lower Craighill Channel.
The Maryland Board of Pilots has now banned on-duty pilots from using their phones.
The US Coast Guard investigated the incident but lacked direct authority to discipline the pilot as he was acting on his state licence at the time. The Coast Guard urged vessel owners and marine operators to develop policies outlining the use of cellphones and other portable electronic devices.
The Ever Forward remained stuck for 35 days in Chesapeake before the area was dredged and tugs freed it on a seasonal high tide. Evergreen Line, the vessel owner, agreed to pay $676 000 towards the rehabilitation of oysters and crabs in the bay.
