On December 23, 2021, about 2201 local time, the motor yacht Utopia IV and tank vessel Tropic Breeze were transiting the Northeast Providence Channel, 20 miles northwest of Nassau, Bahamas, when the two vessels collided. The Tropic Breeze’s engine room began flooding. The vessel’s seven crewmembers abandoned the Tropic Breeze to liferafts and a rescue boat before the ship sank, and they were rescued by a Good Samaritan vessel. Three of the 13 crew aboard the Utopia IV sustained minor injuries. There were 156,500 gallons of petroleum cargo and fuel lost with the tanker. Damage to the vessels was estimated at $7.9 million.
We determined that that the probable cause of the collision between the yacht Utopia IV and the tank vessel Tropic Breeze was the Utopia IV’s wheelhouse crew not maintaining a proper lookout and therefore not identifying the tank vessel they were overtaking. Contributing was the Tropic Breeze's bridge team also not maintaining a proper lookout.
