alcohol – Officer of the Watch

Seafarer Death After Falling in Frozen Water – Investigation Report

December 3, 2012 by Officer of the Watch Leave a Comment

CARISMA had been on a voyage from Slite to Roenne to take a cargo of sand. The ship arrived at Roenne on 25 January 2011 at 2200. As the loading operation was planned to commence the next morning, it was decided not to rig the gangway until visitors were expected. Half an hour after arrival, a part of the crew left the ship to go ashore. Instead of rigging the gang-way they used a pilot ladder that they rigged on the ship side. Shortly after having arrived at the town centre, one of the crew members felt tired and returned to the ship. At 0020 on 26 of January 2012, the seaman was observed struggling in the water between the ship and the quay. Within ten minutes the seaman was safe, but he died later that night at the hospital in Roenne.

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Filed Under: ACCIDENT INVESTIGATION REPORTS Tagged With: accident, alcohol, fall, gangway, Pilot ladders

Drunken Master Causes Allision

November 22, 2012 by Officer of the Watch Leave a Comment

The cargo ship MV Warnow Jupiter, being enroute Rotterdam-Wismar, allided with the gate of the new Northern Lock of the Kiel Canal in Brundsbüttel in the night of Nov 21, 2012 short past midnight. The police breathalyzed the captain who was found to be intoxicated with 1,05 per mille.

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Filed Under: OOW FOCUS Tagged With: accident, alcohol, Allision, Cargo Ship, Kiel Canal, MV Warnow Jupiter, Warnow Jupiter

Risk Assessing the Implementation of the New STCW

November 21, 2012 by Officer of the Watch 1 Comment

During the 3rd annual SAFETY4SEA forum held in Athens in October 2012, Apostolos Belokas, Managing Editor of SAFETY4SEA and Principal Consultant & CEO, SQE Marine Group, gave a very interesting speech on the implications of the requirements of the new STCW. Despite the fact that the new STCW has been accepted by a diplomatic conference in Manila back in June 2010, unfortunately many industry stakeholders are not aware of the implications of the new requirements and as a result they have not addressed their safeguards properly.

Crewman Death After Falling Overboard – Investigation Report

November 12, 2012 by Officer of the Watch 3 Comments

On 13 December 2010, an able seaman (AB) fell into the River Clyde from the St Vincent and the Grenadines registered cargo vessel Joanna, while the vessel was alongside in Glasgow, Scotland. He was recovered from the water about 25 minutes later, but could not be resuscitated. The investigation identified that the AB almost certainly fell while climbing up to the port side platform of the straddle lift used to move the vessel’s cargo hatch covers.

Drunken Captain Almost Run Cargo Ship Aground

October 11, 2012 by Officer of the Watch Leave a Comment

The cargo ship Wilson Avonmouth was in danger of running aground north of Helsingør on Oct 10, 2012, around midnight. Drunken captain woke up at the very last minute. A quick response and cooperation between Danish and Swedish authorities prevented a Maltese-registered cargo ship running aground north of Elsinore on Tuesday night.

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Filed Under: OOW FOCUS Tagged With: accident, alcohol, Cargo Ship, VTS, Wilson Avonmouth

Seafarer’s Health & Lifestyle

April 22, 2012 by Stavros Kairis Leave a Comment

Physical and mental health problems amongst seafarers are not uncommon particularly if we consider the type and the difficulties of the work that a seafarer has to face onboard.

When thinking of seafarers’ health and lifestyle one should always have in mind just few of the following factors: unstable work schedules and long working hours due to operational needs, the small community which one should adapt and work with, the feeling of being away from home and familiar faces, the difficult working environment as well as all the hazards that are involved, the restricted medical facilities and limited medical supplies, the confined nature of life on board ship, the climate of the area where the ship is operating.

All the above along with the come and go from home nature of the seafaring profession adds pressure to a person, even if he is not realizing it and is not helping in any way to maintain healthy behaviors like frequent exercise, normal sleep intervals, healthy living environment etc.

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Filed Under: OOW FOCUS Tagged With: alcohol, Crew, drugs, food, health, seafarer, smoking, stress