Tanker had steering problem before New Orleans riverboat crash, NTSB says

NEW ORLEANS - A tanker experienced a steering problem that left its rudder turned to the right before it collided with the passenger vessel American Heritage on the Mississippi River on Friday, federal investigators said Sunday.

Bart Barnum, a senior marine accident investigator with the National Transportation Safety Board, said preliminary findings came from a review of more than nine hours of information downloaded from the Atlantic Asphalt’s voyage data recorder.

Investigators have not determined what caused the steering problem.

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Dig deeper:

At about 12:26 p.m. Friday local time, the Atlantic Asphalt was traveling upriver near the Crescent City Connection bridge when it experienced what investigators called a "steering casualty," Barnum said.

"We are aware that there was an issue with the steering on board," Barnum said, leaving the rudder turned to starboard and causing the tanker to veer toward the river’s east bank.

As the tanker approached the bank, its recorder captured audio consistent with warning whistles, radio requests for assistance, commands to deploy anchors and emergency ship-handling orders, Barnum said.

The Atlantic Asphalt struck the American Heritage at about 12:28 p.m., roughly two minutes after the steering problem began.

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What they're saying:

Barnum cautioned that investigators are examining multiple possible explanations for the steering issue.

The voyage data recorder captured bridge audio and information about the tanker’s rudder angle, engine speed, course and speed. Investigators are continuing to analyze those recordings and other electronic evidence.

Another NTSB official said investigators have the tanker’s speed data but are still reviewing it and were not ready to release it publicly.

That official also said video showed anchors down, but investigators were still determining which anchors were deployed and how far they had been lowered.

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What's next:

Interviews with American Heritage crew members were underway Sunday, Barnum said. Interviews with the Atlantic Asphalt’s crew were scheduled to begin Monday and continue during the week.

NTSB transportation disaster assistance personnel also have contacted passengers who remained in New Orleans and were referring those with potentially useful information to investigators.

The Coast Guard and salvage companies are overseeing efforts to recover the vessel. An NTSB official said divers had been in the water Sunday and investigators would continue gathering evidence as recovery work proceeded.

The NTSB expects to release a preliminary report within about 30 days. Officials said Sunday’s briefing would be the agency’s last at the scene, with further updates posted online.

What you can do:

Anyone with photos, video or other information that could help investigators is asked to email witness@ntsb.gov.