As hazard
Severe grounding applies extreme loads upon ship structures. In less severe accidents, it might result only in damage to the hull; however, in most serious accidents, it might lead to hull breaches, cargo spills, total loss of the vessel, and, in the worst cases, human casualties. Grounding accounts for about one-third of commercial ship accidents,Kite-Powell HL, Jin D, Jebsen J, Papakonstantinou V, Patrikalakis N (1999) Investigation of Potential Risk Factors for Groundings of Commercial Vessels in U.S. Ports. International Journal of Offshore and Polar Engineering 9 (1):16-21Jebsen JJ, Papakonstantinou VC (1997) Evaluation of the Physical Risk of Ship Grounding. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and ranks second in frequency, after ship-on-ship collision.Samuelides MS, Ventikos NP, Gemelos IC (2009) Survey on grounding incidents: Statistical analysis and risk assessment. Ships and Offshore Structures 4 (1):55-68 Grounding accidents are being studied in many international ports with serious concerns, e.g.Causes
Among the causes of unintentional grounding are: *CurrentBriggs MJ, Borgman LE, Bratteland E (2003) Probability assessment for deep-draft navigation channel design. Coastal Engineering 48:29-50 *DarknessLin S-C (1999) Physical Risk Analysis of Ship grounding. Massachusetts Institute of Technology *Tide *Visibility *Waves *Wind *Depth of waterwayQuy N.M., Vrijling J.K., Gelder P.H.A.J.M. van, Groenveld R. (2006) On the assessment of ship grounding risk in restricted channels. Paper presented at The 8th International Conference on Marine Sciences and Technologies - Black Sea Conference, Varna, Bulgaria, September 25th-27th *Geometry of waterway *Age of vessel *Size of vessel *Type of vessel *Speed *Human and organizational factorsPraetorius G (2012) Safety within the Vessel Traffic Service (VTS) Domain - Understanding the role of the VTS for safety within maritime traffic management. Chalmers University of Technology, Gothenburg *War, terror attack, and piracyRecovery
When accidental grounding occurs, the ship or its cargo, will need to be removed if possible. This is done for various reason: * The grounded ship remains seaworthy so the ship is removed in order to be repaired and return to service * A stranded ship is an unsightly image of the area * A stranded ship causes significantly stress on its structure and will eventually become a shipwreck if not properly dealt with * The ship contains hazardous material and causes environmental damage if the material is to be released, which will eventually happen if stranded long enough * A ship might be removed to prevent unauthorized entry into the ship by locals * The grounded ship is a navigation hazard or otherwise obstructs a shipping routeSee also
* 2009 USS ''Port Royal'' grounding *References
{{Reflist Maritime incidents