Photo: US Navy / Getty Images
A USS Momsen and another USS Harpers Ferry were transiting in opposite directions in San Diego Bay,
when they got dangerously close and were about to collide violently, if it weren’t for last-minute maneuvers.
Now the Navy is investigating how two of its warships ended up on a collision course in a narrow channel of California’s San Diego Bay
, when they came within 12 yards of each other.
Fortunately,
none were harmed and no sailors were injured as a result of the evasive actions that the crew achieved before the imminent clash.
The incident occurred in a somewhat narrow part of the channel that requires constant turns, according to the Navy officer. The commanders of both ships agreed in advance to cross the channel simultaneously and pass in opposite directions, but, although the ships they were in communication from the beginning, they ended up sailing straight ahead.
The moment was captured on video and widely disseminated on social networks, where the near-accident is shown and includes audio of the two boats communicating to avoid the collision.
The Harpers Ferry is an amphibious ship of 857 feet long that weighs more than twice as long as the destroyer Momsen, so it appears slower to turn in the video.
According to experts, it was not a viable option for any of the two boats simply stop and let the other pass, because without propulsion they would be at the mercy of the currents and the wind, and would not be able to stay stable and on course.
The Navy is now working for find out how the two ships got into that predicament in the first place and who might have been responsible.
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