BALTIMORE, Md. (WBFF) — In 2022, the Ever Forward, a 1,100 foot container ship ran aground in the Chesapeake Bay. And stayed stuck there for five weeks.
A recent investigative report into the incident involving the Ever Forward container ship said the grounding was caused, in part, by “failure to maintain situational awareness and attention while navigating.”
The report said “Pilot 1” of the Ever Forward was on the phone, texting, and sending emails leading up to the ship’s grounding.
One of the Pilot’s five phone calls, according to the report, was a personal phone call that lasted 55 minutes.
This week, Maryland Secretary of Labor Tiffany Robinson sent a letter to the Maryland Board of Pilots calling for a cell phone usage policy be considered by the group at its meeting next month.
“In absence of any federal maritime policy that expressly prohibits personal mobile phone usage by a licensed container vessel pilot, I respectfully request in my capacity as Secretary that the Maryland Board of Pilots specifically address this issue at their next meeting on January 6, 2023,” Robinson said in the letter.