Stability in a Collision

When the passenger vessel Marchioness was run down and capsized in the river Thames in London, 51 people drowned. This project formed part of the Formal Safety Assessment conducted following the Inquiry. Model tests were conducted on three types of vessel to examine the mechanism of capsize in the event of being run down by a much larger vessel, and the extent to which stability characteristics affect the behaviour during, and following, the impact. The results will be of interest to anyone involved in operating or regulating small vessels which navigate in close proximity to larger ones.

Parameters Determining the Survivability of Small Passenger Vessels in Collisions.(PDF, 7.3MB)