More questions than answers attend the grounding of the tugboat Pathfinder on Bligh Reef in Prince William Sound last week. The Coast Guard isn't saying much, and apparently won't until its investigation is complete.
This much is clear. In some of the most carefully watched shipping lanes on Earth, where unblinking vigilance is the rule, somebody blinked.
We don't know what went on in the wheelhouse of the Pathfinder; we don't know if the Coast Guard was actively monitoring the tug at the time of the grounding. But something went seriously wrong to put a tug on ice-scouting duty smack on the rocks of what has been, since 1989, one of the world's most notorious navigation hazards.
Oil shippers, escorts, the Coast Guard, the state, the Prince William Sound Regional Citizens Advisory and Alaskans in general need to know what that serious wrong was to prevent it from happening again. We also need to know how much diesel fuel was spilled and the extent of any harm.
The Pathfinder's grounding is a warning and a reminder that protecting Prince William Sound is a 24/7, no-exceptions job. Double-hulled tankers, tractor-tug escorts, backup tracking systems are necessary. But they're only as good as the people who run them.
The tug's fate drives one lesson home even with cause unknown and conclusions still pending. Safe running in the Sound requires all hands to pay attention, all the time.
BOTTOM LINE: Pathfinder investigation should show the way to avoid a repeat.