Safety First

MESSAGE FROM THE DPA: “Context drives behaviour – OUR Safety Culture Tools”

Dear seafarers, Over the years, our efforts to enhance the Company’s safety culture have led to the development of several “tools”. These tools are always relevant and never outdated. If used routinely and correctly, they can change our behaviour towards Safety. I wish you safe voyages and a safe return home, Elli Moretti

1. STOP, TAKE 5 poster – LMRA card Is it always in your coverall’s front pocket? Do you use it during a tool box talk at the job site? Or when you have a task and you are alone? With a mental Last Minute Risk Assessment you can: - Enhance your SITUATIONAL AWARENESS - Be ALERT - Be in a state of CHRONIC UNEASE

2. SWO – Stop Work Obligation Is it always in your coverall’s front pocket? Do you feel free to speak up? Can you spot Unsafe Conditions and Weak Signals? With your SWO card you can: - Speak up and INTERVENE - Enhance our NO BLAME CULTURE - Spot WEAK SIGNALS

3. PPE Matrix: “Today choose all the right PPE!” Is this poster on your cabin door? Do you discuss about PPE during your Daily Work Planning Meeting? With your PPE Matrix you can: - Be PROACTIVE - Become FAMILIAR - Remember PPE is your LAST LINE OF DEFENCE

4. Nine Life Saving Rules – 9LSR & 5. Visitors’ General Safety Rules Are these posters prominently displayed in various places in the accommodation? With these you can: - Promote your personal SAFETY onboard and ashore - PREVENT accidents of persons not familiar with life onboard

6. LOTO – Lock Out / Tag Out LOTO is a set of SAFEGUARDS and additional safety BARRIERS that are used to ensure all equipment relevant to a task is shut down, inoperable, and (where necessary) de-energized. This allows maintenance and repair work on the system to be performed safely.

These tools are the “Context” that can help you change your and your colleagues’ “Behaviour” towards Safety.

Fatal fall from a ladder

Source: BSAFE Britannia P&I

An AB on board a product tanker suffered severe injuries after falling from a portable ladder while conducting maintenance work on the launching system for the ship’s free-fall lifeboat. Despite being administered first aid in the ship’s hospital, he tragically died three hours after the incident.

A lashing turnbuckle for the free-fall lifeboat was defective due to corrosion, and the securing pin was seized. The C/O informed both the bosun and the AB, who was to carry out the maintenance work, that the job would only involve the removal of the remaining rust and painting of the turnbuckle. The turnbuckle was in the aft of the lifeboat and could be safely reached from the upper deck. After safely completing this task, the AB noticed that the forward hook on the davit of the free-fall lifeboat needed lubrication with WD40 penetrating oil. The AB proceeded to the paint store, where the bosun was working, and asked him to assist him with the maintenance task on the forward hook by steadying a ladder he had positioned on deck below the lifeboat to reach the hook. HOWEVER: - He did not have authorization for working aloft, as there was a 10 m/s wind. - The C/O did not know about this task and no RA was carried out. - The height from the deck to the hook was about 4.8 metres. - The ladder was 5 metres in length and was equipped with rubber feet at the bottom of each leg. - The ladder feet were significantly worn and neither was in firm contact with the deck. - Despite the ladder being unstable, it was not secured by any other means. - The bosun did not use his Stop Work Obligation (SWO) effectively. The AB climbed up the ladder, reportedly not wearing any PPE. The bosun tried to stop him, but he nonetheless continued to assist by holding the ladder while the AB ascended. Having climbed part of the way up, the ladder suddenly slipped. The bosun was not able to hold the ladder, so the AB fell and ending up lying unconscious on his back on the deck. TRUST: TEN Really Useful Safety Tips WORKING ALOFT

1. Assess the risks when planning a working aloft task. 2. Discussions during your ‘’Daily work planning meeting" can be very helpful. 3. When you are at the site of your task, use your LMRA card first! 4. When assessing the risks, consider fatigue, training, time pressures, procedures, workloads and environmental conditions.

5. Use guard rails, proper lighting and the marking of trip hazards. 6. Use all the proper PPE such as the above mentioned life vest.

7. Consider each individual person's experience. 8. Maintain high standards of safety when the ship is also in Drydock. 9. Take into account the possibility of emergencies occurring when planning a task. 10.REMEMBER! Working at heights is not only associated with working aloft, e.g. in a ship's mast or crane, or outboard, but also when working inside tanks or other enclosed spaces where there is a great risk of falling from one level to another.

The Best Practice selected during last six months was from Cpt A. Stellatos (from Capt. Md Moin Uddin Hassan) “Working over the side, e.g. preparing gangway/pilot ladder, I noticed crew sometimes mistakenly do not wear safety harness with life vest to prevent both falling overboard and drowning. We connected 1pc safety harness with 1 pc life vest without any damage to any of them, sewing condemned harness part (for same strength) and kept near gangway, removing the chances of missing safety harness in hurry.” Upon receipt of this suggestion at the office, we realized that this is something that we can buy and save the vessels the effort. Our PPE Matrix will be updated to include it, with instructions for it to be kept near the gangway.