‘Smooth Travel’ Observed Before Ship Capsized Off Georgia Coast

A tugboat captain who helped push the ill-fated cargo ship Golden Ray from the docks as it left a Georgia seaport said Monday he observed only “smooth travel” before the giant vessel overturned.

Clifton Gorden was the latest of several witnesses to tell federal investigators all seemed normal with the ocean-bound freighter before it began leaning and capsized while making a starboard turn. They have testified during hearings over the past week by the U.S. Coast Guard and the National Transportation Safety Board into what caused the shipwreck.

The South Korean-owned Golden Ray had just left the Port of Brunswick on Sept. 8, 2019, when it overturned with 4,200 vehicles in its cargo decks. All crew members were rescued safely. But a year later, the vessel and its cargo remain partly submerged off St. Simons Island.