Corpus Christi Oil & Gas Co. v. Zapata Gulf Marine Corp.

E. GRADY JOLLY, Circuit Judge:

In early November of 1989, the offshore towboat GULF STAR, operated by Zapata Gulf Marine Operators and crewed by Zapata Gulf Marine Services Corp., was tied to a docking platform in the Gulf of Mexico, waiting for a storm from the north to pass. As the GULF STAR prepared to maneuver, its mooring lines parted, and it and the construction barge to which it was connected began drifting south with the wind and waves toward a gas and condensate producing platform, owned by Corpus Christi1. The tug and barge bore down on the platform, while the GULF STAR’S captain…