An investigation by The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) into the case of the Peter F Gellatly in New Jersey – a collision that caused an estimated $2.7 million of damage – indicates that where a safety management system (SMS) or similar program had been in place, it could have prevented the incident from occurring.
A Safety Alert has been issued to warn vessel owners and operators about the risk of fuel spray fire onboard commercial vessels.
Incidents with fuel spray fire occur quite frequently – most recently, an incident involved a 194 GRT offshore supply vessel. A fire was ignited in the engine room as a result of a high pressure fuel leak spraying over and upon the port engine’s turbocharger. The engine room, which was unmanned at the time of the incident, suffered a substantial amount of damage, and the company itself lost revenues as a result of the operational downtime of the vessel.
Local charter fishing guides in Tofino, a small district off Vancouver Island, have found a new way to improve ocean safety and improve wild salmon habitat, through the launch of a local West Coast Fishing Guide Association (WCFGA) chapter.
The chapter addresses community concerns about safe vessel maintenance and boating practices, includes updates to Transport Canada regulations, and takes a hands-on approach to local conservation of Clayoquot Sound, an area characterised by wild natural scenery.
The Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) is calling for ways to improve passenger vessel safety, in response to the fatal capsizing of the passenger vessel Leviathan II in Clayoquot Sound, British Columbia, back in October 2015. During the incident, passengers onboard the whale-watching vessel were approached by a large breaking wave, which capsized the vessel and threw all passengers and crew into the cold water without thermal protection or flotation aids. This resulted in the death of six passengers and the release of approximately 2000 litres of fuel leaked into the water.
Lady Hopetoun was built in Sydney in 1902, named after the wife of Australia’s first Governor-General, Lord Hopetoun (born John Adrian Louis Hope) (1860-1908).
All those working aboard Lady Hopetoun are committed to keeping the ship functioning as it did in yesteryear, to preserve its beauty and history – much like a living and organic museum.
Representing the grace and style of Edwardian steam launches of her period, Lady Hopetoun is maintained in full operational order by Sydney Heritage Fleet’s volunteers. The vessel is available for charter on Sydney Harbour, in addition to carrying passengers on scheduled Fleet cruises.
Over the last few decades, significant improvements have been made to the structure, function and reliability of boats and ships. Emerging technologies have made them more efficient, as well as safer to operate, however, despite the maritime industry’s continuing growth and evolution in response to economic and technological trends, the incident of maritime casualties is still surprisingly high. This is largely because the maritime industry is more than just about ship structure and reliability – it is about the people that operate within this domain and the human errors that feature significantly in this dynamic sector.
Boating is hugely popular and there are several different types of boats out there – far too many to list. Here are some of the more interesting ones you might come across during your travels at sea.
Operating a Fleet of nine vessels on Sydney Harbour is extremely challenging. Over the last 10 years we have developed appropriate Safety Management System (SMS) as required by NSW Maritime/Roads and Maritime Services in paper form. As we are all aware the Safety Management Systems have become, due to legislation, increasingly demanding for crew and the Designated Person Ashore (DPA) to keep all of the documentation valid and current as required by the Regulators.
A $25 million deep-sea timber port, which has been proposed for Smith Bay on Kangaroo Island, is a cause of concern to a nearby abalone farm, for fear that its development could destroy the marine values of the area and deplete its entire abalone stock. Environmental reports, commissioned by Yumbah Aquaculture, indicate that high sediment loads created through construction and operation of the port present a huge long-term risk to the marine ecology of Smith Bay.
