Marine Accident Investigation Branch Safety Digest 1/2005 - Case 3

Fatal Accident to a Chief Officer of a Dry Cargo Ship

Narrative
The following narrative illustrates the importance of taking extreme care when moving about on deck at night, especially during freezing conditions.

After a cargo of timber had been discharged from the forward part of the single hold of a vessel berthed in a dock, the forward hatch covers (consisting of 4 sections, hinged together and operated by hydraulic power) were then closed and battened down.

By the evening, all cargo had been discharged from the after part of the hold and the stevedores left the vessel through an open gate in the starboard side bulwark. As the main deck was level with the quay, the stevedores did not use the after accommodation gangway, which was about 13m further aft. It was dark and the air temperature was at freezing point.

Shortly afterwards, the chief officer and an AB went onto the main deck to close the after four hatch covers. The hydraulic controls for the after four hatch cover sections were in a metal box mounted high up on the starboard side of the hatch coaming and close to the open bulwark gate. To access the box, the operator had to climb several steps of a hatch coaming ladder and then step onto a grated platform, which was 0.92m above the deck and 0.6m from the bulwark. There was a 0.5m gap between the ship and the quay.

The AB went to the port side of the hatch to release one of two hatch cover restraining hooks so that the first two sections could be lowered, while the chief officer went to the starboard side to release the opposite one. Once the AB had released the hook, he climbed the 2m high coaming ladder to signal to the chief officer that he had released the hook. The AB expected to see the chief officer standing at the hydraulic control platform, but he was not there.

The AB went round to the starboard hydraulic control platform and could not find the chief officer. The AB sought the bosun’s assistance, and together they went in search of their missing colleague. When the bosun shone his torch over the side between the ship and the quay, they saw the logo of the ship’s company on the back of a jacket in the water; they knew at once that they had found the chief officer.

A post mortem examination found that the chief officer had died from a head injury.

The Lessons
1. There was no clear explanation for how the chief officer fell between the ship and the quay. He was an experienced seafarer, who was wearing correct personal protective clothing, was not suffering from fatigue and had no mental or physical health problems. All seafarers, including experienced ones, should remember the perils of moving around on deck and carrying out even routine tasks, especially in darkness and near freezing conditions.

2. Unguarded openings in bulwarks or side rails should be secured as soon as possible after usage – even in still water conditions such as when berthed in a dock.

3. Short-cuts to, or alternative use of ladders and platforms can result in trips and falls with, possibly, fatal consequences.