A Massachusetts judge recently ordered the owners of a tugboat to pay $1.1 million for damages their vessel caused to a tugboat-barge in the Cape Cod Canal. In August 1999, the tugboat Mary Turecamo, owned by Moran Towing Corp., and the barge Florida, owned by Petroleum Transport Corporation, were tied together traveling east in the canal when another tugboat, the Brilliant Ace, passed them going well over the posted speed limit. Due to the vessel's excessive speed, the Mary Turecamo and the Florida went off course, running aground on the north bank of the canal and suffering severe structural damage. The plaintiffs sued the Brilliant Ace's owners, Girasol Maritima SA Inc. and Kyo Kuto Shipping Co., alleging the boat negligently refused to decrease its speed when it passed the barge in the canal.