8 T


his report features an incident where the third mate on board a woodchip


carrier suffered burns to his hands and face when the air compressor he was using to fill an oxygen breathing apparatus cylinder exploded.


The ship was equipped with fixed and portable fire fighting equipment in accordance with SOLAS requirements. In addition to the mandatory BA sets, the operating company had equipped the ship with four closed circuit oxygen breathing apparatus (OBA) sets.


When checking the pressures in the OBA cylinders, the third mate found that one was well below the normal, so he decided to re-fill it. He placed the OBA cylinder in a bucket of iced water and tried to screw the compressor discharge hose connector into the OBA cylinder, but it did not fit. He found an adaptor in the box next to the compressor that fitted both the OBA cylinder and the compressor discharge hose connector. He fitted the adaptor to the hose connector and then fitted it to the OBA cylinder. He then checked all the connections and opened


Rep &orts Studies


Maritime English on sea trial Captain Shahrokh Khodayari


The latest in Captain Khodayari’s series of essays focussing on the English language and its effect on the maritime industry.


Downloadable from: www.he-alert.org/documents/published/ he01090.pdf


Seafarers’ Criminalization Captain Shahrokh Khodayari


In this essay, Captain Khodayari offers some thoughts on how to minimise the number of seafarers facing criminal charges


Downloadable from: www.he-alert.org/documents/published/ he01095.pdf


the OBA cylinder valve; as he reached over the compressor to switch it on, the compressor discharge tube exploded. He was engulfed in a ball of flame.


Earlier on that day, the third mate suggested to the chief mate that he may need to re-fill the BA cylinders, and the chief mate said that he would assist him. However, when the third mate decided to re-fill the OBA cylinder, he did not call the chief mate because he thought that he would be busy preparing for the ship’s arrival. Furthermore, he did not think that he needed the chief mate’s assistance because he had been trained in the use of BA sets while he was at college, had used BA sets during fire drills and had re-filled BA cylinders many times before.


He was not aware of some of the fundamental differences between BA sets and OBA sets, and thought that both OBA cylinders and BA cylinders contained oxygen. The crew were not all familiar with the operation and maintenance requirements associated with OBA sets; and the third mate was not aware of the requirement for OBA


Accident Investigation Reports


Breathing apparatus air compressor explosion on board a woodchip carrier


set cylinders to be sent ashore for re- filling. Since OBA sets were not part of a ship’s mandatory SOLAS fire fighting equipment, they were not covered by seafarer pre-sea training. Therefore, the responsibility for appropriately training the crew lay with the ship’s operators and its senior officers.


The investigation identified three safety issues: The crew were not appropriately trained or drilled in the operation and maintenance of the ship’s OBA sets; the ship’s safety management system did not provide the crew with appropriate guidance in relation to the operation and maintenance of the OBA sets; and there were no engineering controls in place to prevent the inadvertent connection of an OBA cylinder to the air compressor.


The purpose of this summary is to highlight certain human element issues arising from this incident; there are many other issues highlight- ed in this comprehensive accident report. Those who are involved in the management and operation of ships are strongly advised to read the whole report which can be downloaded from: www.atsb.gov.au/media/3596969/ mo2011007.pdf


Exploring differences in perceptions


of risk N Bailey, N Ellis, H Sampson


The Lloyd’s Register Educational Trust Research Unit, Seafarers’ International Research Centre


This report explores differences in perceptions of risk, and its management, amongst personnel directly associated with the operation of ships. It considers the views of personnel at sea and in shore- based offices in a range of positions from Ordinary Seafarer (OS) to company Vice President. The report is based upon case studies of five companies and it builds upon the results of a large scale questionnaire conducted as part of the same study and reported in separate accounts published in 2006 and 2007 respectively.


Downloadable from: www.sirc.cf.ac.uk/Uploads/Publications/ Publications%202012/Exploring%20difference s%20in%20perceptions%20of%20risk.pdf


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The International Maritime Human Element Bulletin


Editor: David Squire, FNI


Published by the Nautical Institute, the world’s leading international professional body for qualified mariners


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The opinions expressed herein are those of the editor or contributors and do not necessarily represent the views of The Nautical Institute or Lloyd’s Register.


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