Case Study: Painting Proves To Be Fatal Even For Experienced Crew Member

An experienced deck crew member was tasked with painting the end of a raised car-deck ramp hatch while a ro-ro was at the dock. He was attending to this work alone when several other crew heard a loud crash in the vicinity of the ramp.

The other crew found the victim lying on the inboard side of the ramp, some 4.5m below the main deck, with a trestle lying on its side and across the lower part of his right leg. The victim was attended to.

He was conscious, but it was quickly assessed that he had broken a leg and an arm, and the shore emergency services were called. The crew member was taken to hospital but died three days later. It was reported that he had suffered a stroke caused by traumatic brain injury.

The official investigation found, among other things, that:

• The victim crossed a safety barrier and fell 4.5m from the main deck on to the ramp.
• The victim’s task did not require access to the unprotected deck edge beyond the rope barrier. It is not known why he entered the hazardous area.
• Work practices adopted by other deck ratings during hatch cover maintenance two days earlier indicated that adherence to the vessel’s safety procedures was more a matter of routine and compliance than of understanding and conviction.

Lessons learned

• Experience does not give one a free pass to short-circuit safety procedures.

Reference: nautinst.org

Latest Case Studies You Would Like:

Real Life Incident: Collision In Daylight And Good Visibility

Posted on September 4, 2023

In the early morning a small cargo ship left port bound for a short sea destination. The OOW was alone on the bridge as it was now daylight and visibility was good.

Real Life Incident: Pressure Washer Risks

Posted on August 11, 2023

On a vessel underway, two engine room crew were detailed to clean the engine room ventilator water mist catcher using a pressure cleaner.

Real Life Incident: Hatch Gantry Crane Safety Study

Posted on August 10, 2023

Current gantry crane practice and risk reduction measures are not adequate, finds a report from Dutch Safety Board (DSB).

Real Life Incident: Cargo Fire Takes 10 Days To Extinguish

Posted on August 9, 2023

A general cargo vessel was fully loaded with cut timber packed into plastic-wrapped packages, both in the cargo hold and on deck.

Real Life Incident: Paltry PPU Position Predictor

Posted on July 17, 2023

In darkness and with visibility further reduced to about 150m in fog, a container vessel was being brought to a tidal river berth under pilotage.