The subject of enclosed spaces has been back in the news again recently with several more reported deaths. I can only presume people are not being properly trained or having been trained have become complacent or forgetful. No-one should be dying in such circumstances in my view.


In another recent incident, four crew members were recovered dead from the dredger Waymon L Boyd, after the vessel suffered a fire at the Port of Corpus Christi, Texas and at least 11 workers lost their lives in a shipyard in Vishakhapatnam in southern India when a huge crane collapsed during load testing.


As a sector, the shipping and boating industry is determined to look for ways to develop new products, new Apps, reduce


emissions, (which is, of course, great for the environment), and even to drive remote surveying technologies. Does this latent wish to push technology to its boundaries, whilst desirable, mean we have taken our eye off the safety ball? In our collective desire to enhance technology have we forgotten about doing the basics well and lost sight of the importance of keeping people safe at sea? The current spate of incidents and accidents would suggest we might have.


A fire on an oil tanker, another on a container ship, a cargo ship colliding with a fishing vessel off Taiwan resulting in twelve missing and two confirmed dead and the death of a worker involved on routine maintenance operations compound what has been a miserable couple of weeks. Are


safety standards slipping and being compromised, or is this just a ‘bad run of luck’?


So, what are we to deduce from all of this carnage and tragedy? Well the MAIB in the UK is certainly busy as a result, launching several new investigations, as other national accident and investigation departments will be too. It serves as a reminder of the perils that lurk at sea. It also helps me to keep focused on the important role that the marine surveyor can be called to play at such times. It is in the darker moments that he or she often brings a range of expertise and skills to bear in the aftermath of such disasters.


As always, our thoughts are with the friends and families as they cope with the bereavement of a loved one.


The Report • December 2020 • Issue 94 | 29


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