- A shipowner is launching a first of its kind project to mitigate confined space entry accidents.
- Increasing diversity and lack of language skills and low profile leads to fatalities.
- Report shows from January 2018 to May 2019, at least 16 dock workers and 12 seafarers lost their lives.
- A noticeable increase of 145 casualties over the last twenty years reported.
Industry is taking a closer look into confined space entry accidents and figuring out ways to avoid them. A shipowner is launching a first of its kind project for the same, says an article published in Safety 4 Sea.
About the ship owner
A member of the Swire Group, the Asian owner-operator China Navigation Company, is conducting a project. This project deals with the issues it faces when calling at some of the smaller island Pacific ports with its liner and tramp services.
What is the problem the company cites?
The problems that often leads to fatalities are:
- Increasing level of diversity among seafarers
- Their limitations of language skills and
- Low profile of labour skills of local stevedore personnel.
What are the challenges?
The challenges are :
- where personnel is employed by private enterprises or
- where applying health and safety policies in practice are challenging.
Steps taken to mitigate risks
To mitigate the risk of injuries that prevents ships from departing, shipowners are now engaging with the ports they regularly call at together with their contractors to create a safer operating environment.
Experts comments and ITF report
Partner of Danish marine safety experts
Erik Green, Partner of Danish marine safety experts Green-Jakobsen commented that
Responsible shipowners – particularly those calling at smaller breakbulk destinations with limited onshore handling equipment – are regularly confronted by unprotected stevedores with limited training expected to perform rigorous manual tasks during both geared and non-geared loading and unloading operations.
ITF report
- Two years ago, ITF reported that the estimated number of preventable deaths by dockworkers registered by the ITF was at fifty on a global scale.
- Yet, from January 2018 to May 2019, ITF calculated at least sixteen dock workers and twelve seafarers that have lost their lives in a confined-space related accident.
- The latter shows a noticeable increase considering the fact that a total of 145 casualties over the last twenty years have been reported.
Need for the project
Therefore, the project is now phasing the implementation phase.
Shipowner launching a project
The first of its kind to be launched by a shipowner rather than a port authority or terminal operator.
Importance of cooperation and interaction
IAPH Managing Director Patrick Verhoeven stated that:
Cooperation and interaction between shipowner-operators, ports, terminal operators and their service providers are very much needed in this area of safety at the quayside.
It is another demonstration of the need for closer collaboration between shipowners, ports and port service providers on an industry level.
Conclusion
Shipowners focus on dealing with stevedoring risks onboard. A project deals with the issues faced when calling at smaller island Pacific ports with its liner and tramp services. Shipowners are engaging with the ports they call at along with their contractors to create a safer operating environment.
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Source: Safety4Sea
