The Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) examines and investigates all types of marine accidents to or on-board UK flagged vessels worldwide, and other vessels in UK territorial waters. This Safety Digest, the second edition of 2023, is a compendium of anonymous articles involving vessels from the merchant, fishing and small craft sector which draws the attention of the marine community to some of the lessons arising from investigations into recent accidents and incidents.
In his introduction, Andrew Moll, Chief Inspector, says, “Welcome to the second MAIB Safety Digest of 2023. I will start by thanking Simon Graves, Duncan Murt and Andy Murray for their respective introductions to the merchant, fishing and recreational sections of this edition; their expertise is self-evident, and their industry insights to safety help bring contemporary context to the cautionary tales in the following pages. I hope you will find time to read the whole edition – there is something here for every mariner – but please do read the section introductions. And, when you have finished, please pass the digest on so others can benefit too.
In his introduction, Simon Graves makes the point that technical solutions to remove or control hazards are reaching their limits, and that the solutions often lie with the individuals carrying out the tasks. In my introduction to one of last year’s safety digests I wrote about precautionary thought, and Andy Murray continues that theme with his APEM acronym (appraise, plan, execute and monitor). Good precautionary thought helps avoid that sinking feeling of, I wish I had … before we left; we have all been there. However, Duncan Murt’s article about his fall overboard demonstrates how even the most safety conscious individual can allow themselves to drift into bad habits or unsafe practices when what they are doing becomes routine and they forget to be afraid.
The near miss incidents in case 1 and case 6 are good examples where nothing could go wrong, until it did. Simple miscommunications or misunderstandings turned routine passings into near collisions because the safety margins had reduced to the point they were almost non-existent. Next time you are considering taking a risk in an approach or narrow channel, remember the container vessel Ever Given blocking the Suez Canal and think again.
The fishing section of this edition contains four instances where a member of the crew was dragged overboard (cases 17, 19 and 20) or nearly overboard (case 21). Some of these had good outcomes, others did not, but all show that the hazard of being dragged overboard during fishing operations remains ever present. There can be little doubt that wearing a lifejacket significantly improves your chances of living to tell the tale; again, read Duncan’s introduction. However, if you are operating single-handed, carrying a personal locator beacon so you can raise the alarm will help ensure that others come to your rescue. And, to take this introduction back to where I started, a bit of precautionary thought and avoiding a drift into unsafe practices could help prevent the accident in the first place.
Download the Safety Digest: MAIB 2/2023
