The Marine Safety Forum (MSF) have released Safety Alert 18-25 regarding a potentially fatal near miss incident during dry-docking. A vessel’s anchors were ranged on the dock bottom for inspection […]
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.
Submit a Report
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
Fires caused by electronic device chargers
What happened? The United States Bureau of Safety & Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) has published Safety Alert 337 on fires relating to the charging of personal electronic devices. IMCA has dealt […]
Umbilical termination failure and loss of ROV
What happened? An ROV system had just completed a test dive to 3000m and was being returned to deck. Upon lifting the system out of the water, the umbilical became […]
Sharp wire: injury during routine maintenance
What happened? Whilst conducting routine engine maintenance a seafarer caught his arm on a sharp piece of wire, causing the need for medical treatment. The seafarer was using a spanner […]
Suspected case of Legionella onboard vessel
What happened? Two cases of “acute pneumonia in severe form” were identified on a survey vessel with 42 persons onboard, including crew and client’s representatives. The client’s health team assumed […]
MSF: Two LTIs – a slip and a fall, and trapping a thumb
The Marine Safety Forum (MSF) have recently released two safety alerts relating to lost time injuries (LTIs). These are Safety Alert 18-27 and Safety Alert 18-24. Incident 1: fractured toe […]
UK HSE: Worker suffers life-changing crush injuries – rotating machine
The UK Health and Safety Executive (UK HSE) have prosecuted a printing company after an employee suffered life-changing crush injuries whilst cleaning rotating machinery. The injured person sustained the crush […]
LTI: Severe burn from short circuited Li-Ion battery
What happened? A crew member suffered severe burns when a Lithium-Ion battery on his person exploded and caught fire. The crew member was about to do the last task […]
Pipelay technician sustained cut to wrist whilst handling testing equipment
What happened? During pipelay operations, two non-destructive testing (NDT) technicians were handling a ‘scanner belt’, which is used to connect the automated ultrasonic testing (AUT) scanner to the pipe for […]
BSEE: Failure of Crane Hydraulic Boom Cylinders
The US Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) has published Safety Alert No. 342, regarding two crane failure accidents, identical in incident. Both accidents occurred during operation on a […]
Crisis Management: Rail Industry High Potential Near Miss
“Thirty centimetres of safety” The UK Rail Accident Investigation Branch (RAIB) has published its report into the detrainment of passengers onto electrically live track near Peckham Rye station on 7 […]
“Don’t forget about gangways” – USCG: Pilot Dies in Gangway Accident
The United States Coast Guard (USCG) has published Safety Alert 14-18 regarding a fatal gangway accident. Whilst boarding, the gangway separated from the vessel and two individuals fell into the […]
Third-party high potential near miss – dropped gangway
What happened? During barge operations at a spool fabrication yard, a high potential near miss occurred when a gangway positioned between the quayside and barge fell 2.4m, landing on the […]
High potential near miss: tensioner pad dropped to under deck carousel
What happened? During the trans-spooling of an umbilical, a tensioner pad retaining bolt sheared, resulting in a 1.5kg tensioner pad dislodging and falling 11m to the under-deck carousel, where it […]
High potential dropped object during lifting operations
What happened? A crewman was hit by a steel plate bouncing off the deck after it fell 14m from a load after a magnet failed. The incident occurred when shaped […]
Glow sticks breaking open – chemical splash risk
What happened? While activating a ‘glow stick’ the casing snapped releasing the glow dye. Our member noted that a number of sticks from the same batch broke open, releasing the […]
LTI – rigger tripped over quayside obstacle in the dark and fell
What happened? A rigger walking along the quayside tripped over an obstacle, and in the resulting fall suffered fractures to both wrists, a bone in his hand and his elbow. […]
Injury sustained during manual handling of sharp object
What happened? A crew member injured his leg while moving a mud agitator with unprotected blades. At the time of incident, the vessel was proceeding to port. First aid was […]
LTI: finger injury during lifting operations
What happened? A crewman suffered a serious hand injury whilst working on subsea mattress recovery using a quick release mattress handling beam. The lifting webbing slings and ROV hooks were […]
Near miss: unplanned deployment of PLET outrigger
What happened? As a pipeline end termination (PLET) passed through the firing line, a rigger incorrectly cut a webbed ratchet strap (instead of a 6mm rope lanyard) which was restraining […]
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