The Exxon Valdez oil tanker left the Trans Alaska Pipeline terminal at 9:12 PM March 23, 1989. The Exxon Valdez was the companies second newest tanker, it was 987 feet long and was carrying 53,094,510 gallons of crude oil. It's destination, Long Beach California.
             William Murphy, an expert ship's pilot had been hired to steer the ship through the Valdez Narrows. Joe Hazelwood, the captain, and helmsman Harry Claar were also in the wheel house. Claar was steering. After successfully guiding the ship through the Valdez Narrows, Murphy left the vessel and Captain Hazelwood took over the wheel house. There were icebergs in the shipping lanes, so Captain Hazelwood ordered Claar to steer the Exxon Valdez out of the shipping lanes to go around the icebergs. He then handed over control of the wheel house to the third mate, Gregory Cousins, with specific instructions to return the ship back into the shipping lanes when the tanker reached a certain point. Claar was then replaced by Helmsman Robert Kagan. Cousins and Kagan failed to make the turn back into the shipping lanes at the point the captain had indicated. The mistake was noticed too late and at 12:04 AM the ship ran aground on Bligh Reef.
             This accident can be attributed almost wholly to human error. The Valdez Narrows had been being used for 12 years and there had been more than 12,000 successful trips through the narrows. The crew of the Exxon Valdez had gotten slothful. Third Mate Cousins was suppose to have been relieved as he had been on duty for 6 hours and awake for the past 18 hours, but instead of waking the Second Mate for the midnight-4 shift he continued on duty himself. Cousins was also the only officer on the bridge which was against company rules. The Captain had been seen at a bar during the day and admitted to having some alcoholic drinks, but he has always claimed he was not drunk, even though traces of alcohol was found in his blood several hour...