Fishing Vessel Safety Digest 2010

Produced by the Marine Accident Investigation Branch © Crown Copyright 2010

Printed in the UK May 2010

The Marine Accident Investigation Branch is an independent part of the Department for Transport, (DfT) and is completely separate from the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA). The Chief Inspector of Marine Accidents is responsible to the Secretary of State for Transport. The offices of the Branch are located at Mountbatten House, Grosvenor Square, Southampton SO15 2JU. This Safety Digest draws the attention of the marine community to some of the lessons arising from investigations into recent accidents. This information is published to inform the fishing industry and the public of the general circumstances of marine accidents and to draw out the lessons to be learned. The sole purpose of the Safety Digest is to prevent similar accidents happening again. The content must necessarily be regarded as tentative and subject to alteration if additional evidence becomes available. The articles do not assign fault or blame nor do they determine liability. The lessons often extend beyond the events of the incidents themselves to ensure the maximum value can be achieved. Extracts can be published without specific permission providing the source is duly acknowledged. The Safety Digest is only available from the Department for Transport, and can be obtained by applying to the MAIB. Other publications are available from the MAIB.

The telephone number for general use is 023 8039 5500

The Branch fax number is 023 8023 2459

The e-mail address is maib@dft.gsi.gov.uk

Safety Digests are available on the Internet: www.maib.gov.uk

If you wish to report an accident please call our 24 hour reporting line 023 8023 2527

The role of the MAIB is to contribute to safety at sea by determining the causes and circumstances of accidents, and working with others to reduce the likelihood of such causes and circumstances recurring in the future.

Extract from

The Merchant Shipping (Accident Reporting and Investigation) Regulations 2005 The fundamental purpose of investigating an accident under these regulations is to determine its circumstances and the cause with the aim of improving the safety of life at sea and the avoidance of accidents in the future. It is not the purpose to apportion liability, nor, except so far as is necessary to achieve the fundamental purpose, to apportion blame.

Contents Chief Inspector’s Foreword 4

Fishermen’s Tales 6

1 Watch Where You’re Going 8 2 Lucky to Survive 10 3 Foundering – Always Check Why Bilge Alarms Sound 12 4 The Blind Leading the Blind 14 5 No Safety Training, Faulty Fire Detectors and Emergency Equipment – A Sorry Tale of Woe 16 6 Fishing Boat Sunk by Mound of Clay! 20 7 Tragedy Resulting From Crewman Standing in Bight 22 8 Scallop Dredger Capsize and Sinking – “Be Prepared” 25 9 Burning the Candle at Both Ends? 28 10 Beware the Bight 29 11 Fast, and it all Happened so Fast 30 12 What Did We Hit? 32 13 A Costly Snack 34 14 A Basic Mistake Costs a Deckhand His Life 35 15 Over and Out 37 16 Downflooding and Stability Reminder 39 17 What Price an Arm? 41

Fishing Vessel Accident Statistics 44 Major Accident Locations Chart 46 MAIB Published Reports 47 Glossary 48 MAIB Report Request Form 49

Chief Inspector’s

13 Fishermen died in accidents in 2009, the second worst total in the last 10 years

Foreword In 2009 13 UK fishing vessels were lost, and 13 fishermen died in accidents. While the number of fishing vessels lost represents a very pleasing reduction, the deaths were the second worst total in the last 10 years. 9 fishermen were lost overboard, and 4 died (in 2 separate accidents) when their vessels sank or capsized. Putting it another way, if this fatality rate continues, in the course of a normal working life more than 1 in 20 UK fishermen can expect to die in such an accident. This has to be addressed.

Being dragged overboard when shooting gear is one of the most likely causes of a fisherman being lost. Please reassess your onboard systems for shooting and recovering gear; keep equipment and personnel physically separated; discuss the risks with your crewmates; and do not take any chances.

Many fishermen who do go over the side could be rescued if their vessel was prepared and properly equipped. In every vessel, regardless of size, the crew needs to think about how they would recover a man from the water, and have equipment ready to hand. It is never as easy as you may think.

Finally, as I forewarned in last year’s Fishing Safety Digest, we have seen the return of an old killer – crew returning to their vessels alongside, at night, after a few beers ashore. Three fishermen died this way in 3 separate accidents in 2009. While fishermen may be used to leaping from broken jetty ladders, and jumping over gaps between vessels, what might look straightforward in daylight, can become a deathtrap at night, particularly after an evening in the pub. If fishermen are going to live onboard, it is essential that a safe means of access is provided.

Please read through the articles in this publication, and take the time to think through what you need to do to ensure that you and your crewmates come home alive.

Fishermen’s Tales The boat I’m on is the Ocean I came up near the boat and caught hold of the line Spray, a netter from Newlyn, going over the side. I was very lucky because I came up Penzance. We were about near a four foot gap in the bulwalk between the shelterdeck 25 miles off the Lizard at and the stern. As the boat rolled, my crewmates just hauled about 8.00 PM and it was me on board. If I hadn’t come up just there I don’t know how pitch black. they would have got me back on board. I was very lucky. It was the last haul of I wasn’t wearing a lifejacket. When I surfaced, the the day and I’d come up to cold caused my blood to go to my core, so my arms and shoot the last end. I saw the net was curled up in a ball legs started to weaken. I was only in the water for about and I took my eye off what I was doing and stepped into 4 minutes but it was hard to stay afloat. If I hadn’t been the rope pound to sort it out. rescued quickly, I wouldn’t have been able to keep up for Next thing I know, the rope anchor came up from much longer. behind and squashed me against the side of the boat. I If I had worn a lifejacket, it would have kept me afloat shouted to the skipper who knocked her out of gear. As he even if my legs had weakened because of the cold. I’ll did, the tension on the net attached to the anchor pinged always wear a lifejacket when I’m on deck in the future and me 10 feet in the air and over the side. I think all fishermen should do the same. It’s easy to think I remember the anchor on top of me pulling me down. you don’t need one except if the boat goes down, but you I went deep enough that the lights from the boat faded so it never know if you’re going to end up in the water some must have been quite deep. I remember thinking about my other way and a lifejacket definitely gives you a better family and about not seeing them again so I struggled to chance of being recovered alive. get my boots off. Luckily, I got the rope and anchor off and got to the surface. Wayne Evans, Man overboard survivor from Ocean Spray

I have spent the majority I recall an incident (and I am not ashamed to admit of my working life as a that it involved me) whereby a self-inflating lifejacket deckhand and skipper in the which had been worn for months but had not been fishing industry. regularly checked, had to be inflated by mouth as the less Fishing remains the than balmy waters of The Little Minch lapped under my most dangerous occupation chin. The CO2 canister had not fired due to it becoming in the UK; Fishermen are unscrewed. Thankfully the incident happened in sheltered 115 times more likely to waters and I was rescued almost immediately. suffer a fatal accident than I’ve now left the industry. There are many aspects those within the general I do not miss: fishing is demanding, tortuous, frustrating workforce, and 24 times and can be the most demoralising work. However it is more likely than those in the construction industry. The also exhilarating, rewarding and incredibly exciting, end rates of fishing fatalities have not shown any improvement the camaraderie and brotherhood are unique. I wish all in recent years. fishermen many safe and successful trips. Like most fishermen, I have encountered many “close calls” which act as a timely reminder as to how dangerous Gavin Morrison, (Ex Fisherman) the fishing industry can be.

After 25 years fishing, I have crew shouting at him. He just looked at us, then turned never seen a person injured round lay face down in the water, within 30 seconds his or fall overboard. All that body had sunk beneath the surface. changed on 11 February 2009 This came as a huge shock for me because I always when I tragically lost one believed that someone would last maybe 5-10 minutes in of my crew during a routine the water, in good sea conditions. trawling operation. He was in the water no longer than 2-4 minutes. While fishing my 23 Unfortunately he wasn’t wearing a lifejacket. metre scallop dredger in That has all changed now. My crew have to wear them Cardigan Bay, 6 miles from on deck, and have signed the Risk Assessment book to shore in good weather say they will wear them. conditions, one of my crew I myself have worn them when I was a deckhand on lost his balance when a rope parted that was attached to one boat, and found them to be no burden at all while one of the scallop bellys. working. After a day or two you forget you’re wearing them. The crew raised the alarm and I sighted the man in In my view I think they should be made compulsory to the water from my port wheelhouse window, he was alive wear on deck by fishermen. and trying to keep himself afloat. I immediately put the boat You think that the worst things happen in the worst hard astern and got back to him pretty quickly. The crew weather conditions, on this occasion it wasn’t. The risks threw a life-ring to him and screamed for him to grab it. are there 24/7 regardless of the conditions. His face was blue and his eyes were large, haunting like. His paddling got weaker, and he didn’t respond to the Raymond Strachan, skipper of Maggie Ann (FR 110)

1 Watch Where You’re Going Narrative At about 0300, an 18m wooden skipper set a course on the automatic to wait until high water before making hulled prawn trawler left her port of helm to pass on his port side a small further attempts to refloat. He did not landing for her fishing grounds. Once island, which lay about 2 miles to alert the coastguard of his situation, through the breakwaters, the two the south-west. The tidal stream was but he did inform the harbour deckhands, who had helped letting flowing north to south. authority, which later alerted the go, turned in, leaving the skipper The skipper then went to the emergency services. The coastguard alone on watch in the wheelhouse. aft-facing chart table to process the dispatched an all-weather lifeboat Although the skipper went home at previous evening’s landing receipts. and an inshore lifeboat to standby weekends, during the working week Shortly afterwards, the vessel the grounded vessel. he was receiving only about 4 hours grounded on an outlying shoal to The skipper was able to obtain sleep a night when the vessel was the island, waking the deckhands the assistance of two passing fishing alongside. He was maximising the who were all turned in. They quickly vessels to tow his vessel off the shoal time spent fishing for prawns during checked the vessel and ascertained at the next high water. The trawler the long summer daylight hours. that she was not taking water. The then returned to harbour, where it When the vessel cleared the skipper was unable to drive the was found that damage was limited to approaches to the harbour, the vessel off the shoal and he decided the forefoot and the steel keel band.

The Lessons

1 It is essential that watchkeepers maintain a proper navigational watch at all times and do not undertake any other duties that would interfere with 3 In this case, the skipper did not alert the coastguard because he believed that he was in a stable position, and that his vessel would refloat safely the safe navigation of the vessel. Further advice on best at high water. It is always wise to alert the coastguard as navigational practice can be found in the MCA’s MGN soon as possible following an accident or incident, even 313 (F). if assistance is not needed immediately. Do not adopt a false sense of security. Incidents can deteriorate rapidly. Forewarned emergency services can respond more

2 Skippers should take full account of the quality and quantity of rest taken when determining fitness for duty, and use additional crew members as effectively.

necessary to ensure that a proper lookout is maintained.

2 Lucky to Survive Narrative An 8m fishing vessel, trawling in an estuary on the west coast, power of the onrushing water, leaving them no time to send a ‘Mayday’. lifebuoy, which fortunately had floated free as the vessel sank. However, was preparing to haul her gear After the vessel had capsized, they were now at the mercy of a when the net snagged on the sea the crew found themselves inside strong tidal current, and a mile off a bed. The crew of two attempted, the now inverted and flooded sparsely populated shoreline, which unsuccessfully, to knock the winch wheelhouse. One of them managed they were unable to reach owing to out of gear in order to slacken the to swim clear quite quickly, while the strength of the tide. warp, and also attempted to turn the the other relied on a pocket of air to After an hour in the water, the boat back to starboard as the vessel survive the initial capsize until he, too, crew were seen from the shore by a took a shear and a heel to port. was able to swim out of the upturned member of the public, who alerted Before the vessel snagged her wheelhouse. Although his clothing the coastguard, and they were soon net she had been towing down-tide, snagged on the winch, he was able rescued by the local inshore lifeboat. and when she initially heeled over, to get himself to the surface and clear Had they not been spotted at waves started to come onto her of the vessel just before she began to that time, they could potentially have deck, causing her to heel over even settle by the stern, shortly after which been in the water for a very long further. A short time later she started she sank. time as there were no paths or roads to capsize, and the crew were pushed Once clear of the vessel, the close to the shore further up the back into the wheelhouse by the crew joined together and clung onto a estuary.

Vessel with illustration of trawler assembly

The Lessons

1 The crew were young and inexperienced; when they got into difficulties they were unable to react quickly enough to release the trawl warp. They also 2 The crew were fortunate in that they were able to cling to a lifebuoy which had floated free of the sinking vessel. MSN 1813(F) lists the minimum safety attempted to power the vessel back to starboard, when equipment requirements for small fishing vessels, and it would have been prudent to reduce the power and de- recommends the carriage of a liferaft and EPIRB. In this clutch the engine. Always ensure that, in accordance with case neither was carried; had they been, the crew would the guidance given in MGN 20 (M&F) and MGN 265 (F), not have had to place such reliance on good luck and the a risk assessment is undertaken of work activities, and vigilance of a member of the public to ensure their survival. personnel are suitably trained and practised in resolving foreseeable problems.

Foundering – Always Check Why Bilge Alarms Sound Narrative A successful, wooden gill netter up to the floor plates, but he could not be used as these were stripped sailed for her routine 7 day trip with not see where it had originated from, down for maintenance. The skipper a skipper and three crew on board. and there were no obvious signs of then contacted a nearby fishing The team were well trained, they had leakage. He re-configured the on- vessel and told them of the problem. completed all the mandatory safety engine pump from deck wash supply Afterwards he returned to the engine training courses and were serving to bilge pump suction but was unable room and found that the water level in a vessel that had a reputation for to shut the seacocks as they were had not reduced but had increased by being well maintained and run. under water. The skipper immediately a further 20cm; it was now well above For the first couple of days returned to the wheelhouse. He the floor plates and half