What happened Stored metal plates fell on a crewman causing fatal injuries. This incident has been shared with one of our members by a client company, and is public domain […]
Safety Flashes
IMCA safety flashes disseminate important information on incidents and potential hazards and the lessons learnt from them that can help prevent incidents occurring elsewhere in the industry.
Individual safety events are available individually online, tagged and searchable, while the traditional PDF collections are also available for download.
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All members are encouraged to contribute relevant safety-related information – please visit our Safety Flash Reporting page for details on the submission process.
IMCA Contact
Nicholas Hough
Consultant - Safety and Security
Contact
Safety Events
Vessel hull damage due to quayside contact
What happened In two separate incidents at Great Yarmouth in the UK, two vessels have sustained damage to hull plating and hull fenders through contact with damaged, missing or misaligned […]
Failure of natural fibre rope in embarkation ladder
What happened Planned inspection/replacement of a lifeboat embarkation ladder identified the total failure of the natural fibre rope at the securing thimble. The fibre rope at the anchor point securing […]
Line of fire: deck tugger wire failure
What happened? Personnel were standing in line of fire during recovery of a Back-Fill Plough when a chain sling failed, and the rigging recoiled across the deck. A tugger wire […]
Bypassing safety controls – violation of working at height requirements
What went wrong On a vessel in dry dock, painting of the the hull was ongoing, using the shipyard crane and a personnel basket. During this work process it was […]
Three man overboard fatalities
The Marine Safety Investigation Unit of Transport Malta has published two reports outlining three man overboard fatalities. Incident 1 – two men washed overboard whilst working on deck in high […]
Sludge Accumulation in Fresh Water Tank
During inspection of a fresh water tank, it was discovered that there was significant sludge accumulation in the tank. Based on the condition of the tank, it was seen as […]
Lead-acid battery explosion
What happened A lead-acid battery blew up when an engine was started. The incident occurred when, after conducting pre-start checks on a generator, the 2nd Engineer attempted to start the […]
Issues relating to Coronavirus management
A member has shared a number of issues relating to the Coronavirus pandemic. COVID-19 confirmed case on the vessel A vessel assigned employee approached the vessel clinic with a high […]
Inappropriate use of pneumatic line thrower for mooring line
What happened During mooring operations crew on a vessel used a pneumatic line thrower (PLT) to throw a mooring line. Several attempts were made, of which one was successful. Two […]
Disabled audible alarm on fire alarm panel
What happened During routine testing of the fire alarm, it was observed that the Fire Alarm panel was not emitting an audible alarm – there was only a flashing light […]
MAIB: Fatal accident during cargo operations on Karina C
The UK Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) has published accident its investigation report into a fatal crush incident during lifting operations on the general cargo vessel Karina C on 24 […]
Service letter from Palfinger Marine relating to Davit types NPD 11300H and NPD 14800H
A defect (see picture 1, sketch 1) was found during the annual maintenance of a lifeboat davit on a vessel. During scheduled maintenance it was discovered that one of the […]
Rigging failure during riser recovery – soft slings parted
During recovery of a 10m riser section with buoyancy modules attached, the riser section dropped 2.5m to deck when the soft slings parted after rubbing on the sharp edge of […]
Failure of remote control/emergency stop on rescue boat winch
What happened There was a failure of the winch remote control and emergency stop during recovery of the rescue boat to the davit. The incident occurred on completion of rescue […]
MSF: Near miss – potential dropped object found on bundle of casing
The Marine Safety Forum published Safety Alert 20-11 relating to a potential dropped object in a load. The near miss incident occurred during offloading of casing from a supply vessel. […]
Crane whip line parted during hook stop testing
What happened The crane was positioned in the rest while the Crane Operator carried out hook stop testing of the auxiliary winch. An uncontrolled hoisting movement resulted in the headache […]
COVID-19 Improper Risk Management
Two days after departure, a positive PCR test result was received, resulting in the person having to remain isolated on board the vessel for 14 days. The isolation was well […]
Two incidents relating to the condition of personal protective equipment
Here are two incidents reported by two different contractors, relating to the condition of personal protective equipment. Incident 1: Defective Safety Harness What happened Recommendations Crew on board reminded of […]
LTI: Stored energy – rigger injured leg working on quayside
A rigger sustained a significant injury to his lower left leg while working on the quayside during lifting operations. The incident occurred during the hours of darkness, when a third-party […]
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