Health & Safety

Brown Marmorated Stink Bug season requires increased inspection in New Zealand and Australia

Posted on by News Hound
Brown Marmorated Stink Bug
Brown Marmorated Stink Bug

According to Gard P&I Club, the 2019/20 Brown Marmorated Stink Bug season has arrived and ships arriving in New Zealand and Australia from countries with established stink bug populations must prepare for increased surveillance and inspection. Last season, New Zealand turned away four contaminated vessels from its waters.

The Brown Marmorated Stink Bug is an agricultural pest that feeds on, and can severely damage, fruit and vegetable crops. The pest has spread from its native range in East Asia to establish populations in North America and Europe but is not yet established in Australia and New Zealand. If the pest were to find its way to Continue reading “Brown Marmorated Stink Bug season requires increased inspection in New Zealand and Australia”

AMSA release video: Creating a safety management system for fishing vessels

Posted on by News Hound
AMSA release video
AMSA release video

AMSA has produced an excellent short video explaining how to develop a safety management system for fishing vessels. Watch this 16 minute video for easy to understand steps, real-world stories and experiences of why an effective safety management system (SMS) is essential when working in the fishing industry.

Fishing for Safety has been produced via a collaboration between Southern Rocklobster Limited Clean Green Program and AMSA, as part of a broader ongoing project: Southern Rock Lobster Clean Green Program—revision, digitisation and extension across the supply chain. Continue reading “AMSA release video: Creating a safety management system for fishing vessels”

World’s first autonomous spill response vessel demonstrated

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Spill Response Vessel
Spill Response Vessel

A US maritime robotics specialist company has held a successful on-water demonstration of what it claims is the first unmanned and autonomous oil spill response vessel.

As a part of its cooperative agreement with the U.S. Department of Transportation Maritime Administration (MARAD), Boston-based Sea Machines Robotics has announced that it has successfully demonstrated its autonomous systems in action on board a Kvichak Marco skimmer boat during events held along the Portland harbour.

The on-water demonstrations took place aboard the world’s first autonomous spill response vessel Continue reading “World’s first autonomous spill response vessel demonstrated”

Recreational Boating Statistics (US 2018 ) reveal alcohol the main contributing factor in fatal boating accidents

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Alcohol the main contributing factor in fatal boating accidents
Alcohol the main contributing factor in fatal boating accidents

The US Coast Guard has published its 2018 Recreational Boating Statistics Report, revealing that there were 633 boating fatalities nationwide in 2018, which is a 3.8% decrease from 2017. From 2017 to 2018, total recreational boating injuries also fell 4.5% (2,629 to 2,511), and the total number of accidents reduced 3.4% (4,291 to 4,145).

Alcohol continued to be the leading known contributing factor in fatal boating accidents in 2018, accounting for 100 deaths, or 19% of total fatalities.

While these decreases are encouraging, there are still too many deaths and injuries Continue reading “Recreational Boating Statistics (US 2018 ) reveal alcohol the main contributing factor in fatal boating accidents”

Pacific Knight: Poor stability assessment leads fishing vessel to capsize with one fatality

Posted on by News Hound
Starboard quarter of the Pacific Knight. Photo credit: Mike Jones
Starboard quarter of the Pacific Knight. Photo credit: Mike Jones

The National Transportation Safety Board issued an investigation report on the capsizing of the fish tender ‘Pacific Knight’ while at anchor off Alaska in July 2018. The investigation identified several contributing factors to the capsizing, including poor stability assessment by the captain, vessel modifications, overloading and slack water in the tanks.

On July 25, 2018, about 0630 local time, the commercial fish tender Pacific Knight capsized while at anchor about 11 miles south of Dillingham, Alaska. Continue reading “Pacific Knight: Poor stability assessment leads fishing vessel to capsize with one fatality”

Leaking lube oil caused fire on trawler says NTSB investigation report

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Image courtesy of U.S. Coast Guard
Image courtesy of U.S. Coast Guard

The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has released its investigation report into the fire and subsequent sinking of the fishing vessel Master D.

About 0030 local time on August 31, 2018, the Master D was transiting with three crew members in the Gulf of Mexico 45 miles southeast of South Padre Island, Texas, when a fire in the engine room was discovered. After unsuccessfully trying to extinguish the fire, the crew abandoned the vessel without injury. The fire continued to burn until the vessel sank the next day. An oil sheen approximately 400 yards by one mile was visible in the water after the sinking. The estimated property damage exceeded $162,000.

The NTSB determined that the probable cause of the fire aboard the vessel was leaking lube oil from the diesel generator that contacted a Continue reading “Leaking lube oil caused fire on trawler says NTSB investigation report”

USCG says MARPOL deficiencies found on bilge alarm systems

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USCG makes recommendations after discovery
USCG makes recommendations after discovery

During an inspection by the Marine Safety Detachment Port Canaveral Port State Control Officers, there were MARPOL deficiencies identified related to the 15-ppm Bilge Alarm system of the Oily Water Separators (OWS) onboard four separate ships.

Specifically, the PSCOs discovered that the entries in the Oil Record Book (ORB) weren’t compliant to the Bilge Alarm Data being displayed by the bilge alarm, also known as oil content meter.

Concerning the Bilge Alarm Data, it is required to record:
– date
– time
– alarm status
– the operating status of the 15-ppm Bilge Separator.

Moreover, the device is required to store the data for minimum of eight months, so that data is displayed or printed in a protocol for official system inspections as Continue reading “USCG says MARPOL deficiencies found on bilge alarm systems”

Hapag-Lloyd set to impose $15,000 penalty for mis-declaration of hazardous cargoes

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Hapag-Lloyd
Hapag-Lloyd

Following the Yantian Express fire incident that Hapag-Lloyd experienced in early 2019, the company has published a statement to say that they will implement a penalty of USD 15,000.00 per container with effect from 15 September 2019.

Specifically, the company highlights that failure to properly declare hazardous cargoes prior to shipment is a violation of the Hazardous Material Regulations. Such violations may be subject to monetary fines and/or criminal prosecution under applicable law.

Hapag-Lloyd has also noted that to ensure the safety of our crew, ships and Continue reading “Hapag-Lloyd set to impose $15,000 penalty for mis-declaration of hazardous cargoes”

West of England P&I Club says More can be done to prevent engine room fires

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Photo credit: West of England P&I Club
Photo credit: West of England P&I Club

West of England P&I Club says that it is well known that fires on ships require a lot of effort to address. And they risk all those on board, presenting extreme danger to the vessel. Engine room fires are especially challenging to put out because of the potential confined nature of the scene and an abundance of fire triangle elements; namely heat, fuel and air.

Now, condition surveys conducted by the West of England P&I Club repeatedly present worrying examples of substandard fire safety in engine rooms which can easily be avoided by taking some simple steps.

The main sources of ignition in the engine room include hot exhaust manifolds of engines, boilers and indicator valves of the engines. When flammable Continue reading “West of England P&I Club says More can be done to prevent engine room fires”

BSU draws attention to watertight integrity after collision

Posted on by News Hound
BSU draws attention to watertight integrity after collision
BSU draws attention to watertight integrity after collision

Germany’s Federal Bureau of Maritime Casualty Investigation (BSU) has drawn operators’ attention in a recent collision incident involving a container ship and a fishing vessel on the river Elbe off Stadersand earlier in 2019.

The German schooner ‘No. 5 Elbe’, built in the 19th century, collided with the Cyprus-flagged 141-meter-long container ship ‘Astrosprinter’ about 30 kilometers (18 miles) west of Hamburg on 8 June 2019.

A total of 28 passengers and 15 crew were onboard the schooner at the time of the incident.

The vessel managed to reach the Schwinge estuary without assistance, Continue reading “BSU draws attention to watertight integrity after collision”

Norway plans to eliminate accidents involving recreational boats

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Norway plans to eliminate recreational boat accidents
Norway plans to eliminate recreational boat accidents

The Norwegian Minister of Trade and Industry Torbjørn Røe has initiated an action plan to reduce the number of serious accidents related with the use of recreational boats in Norwegian waters. The government has a zero-accidents vision for boat traffic.

The target is to achieve zero accidents associated with recreational boats at sea. For this reason, the Norwegian Maritime Directorate was tasked to prepare the plan, which covers the period from 2019 to 2023.

In addition to the zero vision, an ambitious milestone for the first period has been set: 50% reduction in the number of fatalities associated with use of recreational boats before the end of the planning period.

“We want everyone to come home safely when they have been on the sea, Continue reading “Norway plans to eliminate accidents involving recreational boats”

Tiger One report by MAIB says impact of collision lessened by the use of a kill cord and robust construction

Posted on by News Hound
Tiger One was severely damaged.
Tiger One was severely damaged.

The MAIB has published its report into the incident on the River Thames involving Tiger One. At 1738 on 17 January 2019, the commercially operated rigid inflatable boat Tiger One hit a mooring buoy on the River Thames in London, England, at a speed of about 26 knots in darkness. Two passengers and the boat’s two crew were taken to hospital with minor injuries. Tiger One was severely damaged.

Tiger One was one of two 12m RIBs owned and Continue reading “Tiger One report by MAIB says impact of collision lessened by the use of a kill cord and robust construction”

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