A public consultation by the Boat Safety Scheme (BSS) on proposals to a clarified and improved set of BSS examination checking procedures has opened. The consultation will run until 31 May 2022.
The revisions to the procedures Continue reading “Boat Safety Scheme launches public consultation”
This story, alarmingly, is not the first of its kind to reach IIMS. A similar lifejacket clinic at Eastbourne a couple of years ago also revealed a high level of defective flotation devices, some with serious flaws. But is seems the public is not listening and learning.
A recent lifejacket clinic organised by Fowey RNLI found an astonishing 50% were faulty or condemned. The lifejacket clinic invited a team from Ocean Safety Ltd in Plymouth to carry out vital safety checks on a total of 169 lifejackets.
Over 50 per cent needed a critical safety part replacing, Fowey RNLI says, meaning if they had been used in an emergency they may not Continue reading “RNLI Fowey finds over 50% of flotation devices faulty or condemned at a recent lifejacket clinic”
An improperly tightened fastener led to a diesel engine failure on a Washington State Ferries passenger and car ferry near Bainbridge Island, Washington are the findings of a National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) report.
Marine Investigation Report 22/06 details the NTSB’s investigation into the April 22, 2021, catastrophic failure of the no. 3 main engine aboard the Wenatchee during a sea trial in Puget Sound. The failure led to the ejection of components from the engine and resulted in a fire in the no. 2 engine room. No injuries or pollution were reported, while damages were estimated at nearly $3.8 million. Continue reading “Error in maintenance led to diesel engine failure reveals NTSB report”
The IMO’s Sub-Committee on Ship Systems and Equipment (SSE) has finalized prohibition of perfluoro-octane sulfonic acid from fire-fighting systems on board ships.
This prohibition will protect the crew against exposure to dangerous substances that are used in fire-fighting systems and will minimize the negative consequences on the environment.
The International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) sub-committee on ship systems and equipment (SSE) met for the 8th session from 28 February to 4 March. It is important Continue reading “IMO agrees to ban perfluoro-octane sulfonic acid”
The U.S. Coast Guard has issued a safety alert and is warning about the hazards of transporting discarded lithium batteries after a container illegally loaded with them caught fire while en route to the Port of Virginia, where it was set to be loaded onto a ship.
Thankfully the container was not loaded on a ship at the time. Rather, the container was being transported on a chassis from Raleigh, North Carolina when the discarded lithium batteries caught fire on the highway on August 19, 2021, resulting in loss of the cargo and significant damage to the shipping container. Continue reading “Container loaded with discarded lithium batteries catches fire”
AMSA has launched a new construction barge safety campaign focused on the importance of regularly reviewing risks as part of the safety management system to protect lives on these types of vessels.
All domestic commercial vessels are defined as workplaces in Work Health and Safety (WHS) laws. This includes construction barges which must meet the risk assessment requirements of state and territory WHS regulations, as well as the risk assessment requirements under the National Law administered by AMSA.
“These barges undertake different and high-risk activities daily Continue reading “AMSA launches campaign to improve construction barge safety”
On 19 September 2021, a fire broke out in the auxiliary engine room on board the Finland registered roll-on/roll-off cargo ship Finnmaster while departing Hull. In an attempt to extinguish the fire, the ship’s crew activated the machinery space’s fixed CO2 fire extinguishing system pilot hoses, but only half of the system’s gas cylinders opened. The initial investigation identified that one of the CO2 system pilot hoses was blocked due to a manufacturing defect. Several coupling leaks were also found in the pilot lines.
– The quality assurance processes of the pilot hose assembly supplier failed to identify that the hose couplings had not been fully bored through Continue reading “MAIB issues safety warning after discovery of blocked fixed CO2 fire extinguishing system pilot hoses”
AMSA conducted a Safety of Navigation Focused Inspection Campaign (FIC) over the period 1 August to the 8 September 2021 and, extremely concerning, they found that a significant number of ships failed to comply to basic navigation safety requirements.
The campaign focused specifically on:
– The level of compliance with the safety of navigation requirements of International Conventions;
– The familiarity of the master and officers with their processes for ensuring safety of navigation. Continue reading “Significant number of ships do not comply with basic navigation safety requirements is finding from the AMSA FIC”
The Miss Dorothy vessel towing fire started when diesel fuel spray hit an uninsulated section of the engine’s exhaust system, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) report has revealed.
On March 17, 2021, the towing vessel Miss Dorothy was pushing 14 barges upbound on the Lower Mississippi River, north of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, when a fire broke out in the engine room. The eight crewmembers aboard briefly attempted to fight the fire but were unsuccessful and evacuated to the barges. No pollution or injuries were reported and the vessel was declared a total loss at $2.4 million. Continue reading “NTSB report determines probable cause in Miss Dorothy vessel towing fire”
A consortium led by the Danish Institute of Fire and Security Technology (DBI) will deliver a Formal Safety Assessment study on containership fire safety to the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA). The project aims to identify cost-effective risk control options for cargo fires on board container vessels.
Considering the constant increase in containership sizes and the frequency of fire originating in containers, the study will quantitatively assess the fire risks on board such vessels and Continue reading “Consortium set to assess and report on containership fire safety for EMSA”
The fatigue failure of an unrated mooring buoy led to the grounding of a fishing tender during a storm near Bristol Bay, Alaska in 2020, according to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB).
On August 30, 2020, the fishing tender barge SM-3 broke free from its mooring buoy in a storm and went aground. No injuries were reported, but the vessel sustained $4.5 million in damage and left a three-mile-long debris field scattered along the waterfront. Continue reading “Mooring buoy failure caused grounding causing damage of $4.5M reveals NTSB report”
The Steamship Mutual has issued a Risk Alert focusing on container cargo operations to highlight that training and reinforcement of safe work practices is of paramount importance not only to ensure an individual’s personal safety but also to ensure that the work area remains safe for others.
The Club notes that incidents involving serious injuries and fatalities during ccontainer argo operations on vessels are not uncommon and refers to contributory factors that can led to an incident and lessons learned from previous cases. Continue reading “Risk alert for container cargo operations”
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