Safety Flashes

The UK Marine Accident Investigation Branch has published Safety Digest 2/2023, consisting of lessons from recent Marine Accident Reports. IMCA has reviewed the report and passes on to members, as […]

What happened Several divers were affected and two divers became ill when compressed air rather than oxygen was supplied to them by mistake on their BIBS (Built in Breathing System). […]

What happened There was a failure during saturation diving operations. There were no injuries to personnel nor damage to equipment, but time was lost. The automatic control system for the […]

This is a very brief summary of a 2021 case report on the much earlier death of a saturation diver in the Bombay High oilfield, which occurred as a result […]

This is a brief summary of a recent case report on confined space fatalities on board an oil rig during work involving gas sampling/monitoring inside the “spud cans” of the […]

What happened During a vessel transit during which the crane was unused in its boom rest, a crew member observed a piece of metal debris lying under the crane boom […]

What happened During a rescue from height /evacuation drill within the top of the main crane pedestal, a Paraguard stretcher (12kg) slipped out from the dummy and fell approx. 50m […]

What happened A hydraulic cylinder on an Automatic Heave Compensated crane failed. The incident occurred when an offshore vessel was engaged in the installation of a jumper line in 690m […]

What happened On completion of work on a project site, a company team were driving back to their home base. Approximately 1hr 45mins into the journey the driver started to […]

What happened During fuel transfer operations alongside a semi-submersible rig, the officer on watch on the supply vessel PSV observed welding work being undertaken on the deck of the rig. […]

What happened? During launch testing of a lifeboat, a turnbuckle and shackle weighing 7kg fell 23m from the davit onto the boat, landing within a metre of a worker hooking […]

What happened? During the loading of subsea hatch covers onto a vessel, a member of the rigging crew was struck and badly injured by a 55 Te shackle connected to […]

What happened? A member reports a recent incident involving the failure of a 5kg CO2 fire extinguisher during hydrostatic pressure testing. The extinguisher, rated to 200bar, was being tested to […]

What happened? Several 50kg wheeled dry powder fire extinguishers on board a vessel were found to have low pressure and heavy signs of corrosion. This was discovered during an audit […]

What happened? A crew member noticed smoke coming from the ROV workshop and reported a fire. What went right? What went wrong? Lessons learned Members may wish to refer to:

What happened Work was stopped during the practical evaluation portion of rigger training in an onshore industry. It was discovered that the application of eye-nuts were not consistent with their […]

What happened? Two workers removed grating panels at height on a horizontal lay system, in order to gain access to lift points for further removal of a lateral walkway section. […]

What happened A member conducting management visits to vessels discovered three separate cases where “Bosun’s Chairs” or similar support structures for working at height activities related to painting and repair […]

What happened? A smoke detector was activated. A deck officer checked the origin of the alarm which was coming from an area close to the laundry room. A general fire […]

What happened The United States Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) has published Safety Alert 467 relating to heat related illnesses occurring offshore. BSSE notes that there have been […]