- Between 15 January and 14 October 2025, Chinese port authorities will inspect visiting vessels.
- This is to ensure that personnel involved in enclosed space entry activity understand the risks involved and are properly trained and equipped to control them.
The China Maritime Safety Administration (MSA) has started a focused inspection campaign from January 15 to October 14, 2025, to enhance safety for personnel who access enclosed spaces aboard ships, reads a Gard release.
By January 2025, InterManager estimated that around 350 seafarers and third-party workers had died from asphyxiation in enclosed spaces onboard ships since 1996, with 43 accidents since 2022 accounting for 70 of these deaths. This campaign aims to mitigate risks and prevent accidents related to such operations.
The campaign applies to all ships and waterborne facilities that contain enclosed spaces. These spaces are defined as having one or more of the following characteristics:
- Limited entry and exit points
- Insufficient ventilation
- Not intended for continuous human occupation
For additional information and advice concerning the inspection campaign, please refer to Huatai Marine’s circular No. PNI[2025]01 and Oasis’ circular No. 2501.
Be prepared
As highlighted in a recent alert “Improved safety recommendations for entering enclosed spaces onboard ships”, enclosed space entry accidents occur on all types of vessels and involve people of all ranks. There appear to be certain recurring patterns in how these accidents continue to occur in the same way and in the same onboard locations. However, the underlying causes are not always evident, as a number of operational, commercial, technical, and training-related factors may impact these types of accidents.
Gard therefore encourages vessel operators to use China MSA’s special safety campaign as a timely reminder of the necessity of ensuring that persons involved in enclosed space entry activity are aware of the risks and are properly trained and equipped to manage them. Operators and masters should review their enclosed space entry procedures to verify compliance with SOLAS, the ISM Code, relevant IMO and Flag State recommendations, and industry best practices. It is also important to verify that the procedures are fully understood and followed by those working onboard.
Gard’s enclosed space entry safety awareness campaign provides additional guidance and links to videos and other training materials at https://www.gard.no/document/enclosed-space-entry-training/.
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Source: Gard