Cargo ship ran aground on the Isle of Man as the chief officer had 'to go to the toilet'

A cargo ship ran aground off the northern coast of the Isle of Man as the captain had an "urgent need to go to the toilet".

The CEG Orbit ran aground on the Isle of Man on 26 August, 2021. It was sailing to Belfast from Liverpool carrying wheat grain.

A report into the incident says the officer in charge felt a sudden "sharp pain in his intestines" at around 2am.

He then "had an urgent need to leave the bridge to go to the toilet", and he did so leaving the ship unattended.

He did not change the course of the ship, which would have avoided it running aground.

The CEG Orbit had a crew of five, and the Master's standing orders state that the bridge must never be left unattended.

It says "should it be necessary to leave the bridge during watch you must first be relieved by another".

The critical report stated how the Chief Officer "failed to follow a direct instruction from the Master by not calling him to the bridge to be temporarily relieved from his key function of safely navigating the vessel."

It also suggests that it would have been visible enough to make out the shore of the Isle of Man, and also see the lighthouse at the Point of Ayre.

The report adds that this "simply should not have happened", and advises that the company circulate the incident to their fleet to raise awareness about a situation.

It also asked Latvian authorities, where the cargo ship is registered to, to consider if any further action is necessary.

Nobody was injured during the incident, and it did not cause any pollution to the area or harm to wildlife.

The cargo ship was re-floated the following day with assistance from a Manx tug boat, on what was the second attempt.

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