What happened? Several 50kg wheeled dry powder fire extinguishers on board a vessel were found to have low pressure and heavy signs of corrosion. This was discovered during an audit […]
Safety Flashes
IMCA safety flashes disseminate important information on incidents and potential hazards and the lessons learnt from them that can help prevent incidents occurring elsewhere in the industry.
Individual safety events are available individually online, tagged and searchable, while the traditional PDF collections are also available for download.
Submit a Report
All members are encouraged to contribute relevant safety-related information – please visit our Safety Flash Reporting page for details on the submission process.
IMCA Contact
Nicholas Hough
Consultant - Safety and Security
Contact
Safety Events
Unprotected openings in floor grating – work stopped
What happened? Two workers removed grating panels at height on a horizontal lay system, in order to gain access to lift points for further removal of a lateral walkway section. […]
Uncertified bosun’s chairs
What happened A member conducting management visits to vessels discovered three separate cases where “Bosun’s Chairs” or similar support structures for working at height activities related to painting and repair […]
Rope access technician slipped and dislocated shoulder
What happened A rope access technician sustained an injury to the right shoulder while accessing the vessel transom port-side platform, following buoyancy module pad retrieval from the pipe string. Upon […]
Serious hand injury during mooring operations
What happened A dock worker suffered a serious hand injury during mooring operations. The incident occurred as the vessel was prepared for departure from the berth. The mooring foreman signalled […]
Finger Injury while setting up pipe cutting operation
What happened? A crew member was setting up a pipe cutting machine in a vertical position to cut welding that was done on a jumper for repair, when they suffered […]
UK HSE – worker struck in the face by a crane hook
What happened The UK Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has fined a manufacturer after an employee lost an eye when he was struck in the face by a crane hook. […]
LTI – Person fractured pelvis in a fall from a ladder
A crew person suffered a fractured pelvis falling 4-5 metres from a temporary access ladder onboard a cargo vessel. The ladder was installed at a previous equipment mobilisation following realisation […]
Unplanned rotation of drilling machinery
What happened A large diameter subsea drill had completed drilling operations and was returned to the vessel’s deck for planned maintenance. Part of the maintenance programme required the drill support […]
LTI – crew member fell down open hatch
What happened During mooring, a crew person was attempting to secure the rope on the aft section of the vessel. While performing this task, the person stumbled and fell into […]
LTI: serious hand injury – fingers lost in unexpected hatch closure
What happened? A crew person was checking the water tightness of the engine room’s emergency hatch cover. Safety lock pins, used to prevent the hatch cover from closing, were missing. […]
LTI – crew person cracked shin bone
What happened An engineer suffered a broken shin when he slipped taking a shortcut into the engine room. He went into the engine room down some stairs, in order to […]
MAIB: A heavy sheave fell over causing an LTI
What happened A bosun suffered a broken leg when a heavy sheave he was trying to manoeuvre, fell against him. On a vessel going into port, crew were preparing to […]
Fire alarm activation in engine room
What happened There was a small fire in a vessel engine room. There was little damage and no-one was harmed. The incident occurred while a supply vessel was operating within […]
Close approach of AHTS vessel to offshore rig
What happened An AHTS vessel made a close approach to the mooring lines for an offshore rig. The AHTS was involved in anchor handling operations for the rig. The vessel […]
Maintenance and control of fire doors
What happened? A member has discovered instances of mandatory fire doors onboard their vessels being in a poor state of maintenance, and in some cases modified to alter the closing […]
BSEE: Person injured when safety mechanisms failed
What happened The United States Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) has published Safety Alert 455 relating to an incident in which a third-party contract operator sandblasting offshore was […]
Dropped spanner falls 15m
What happened During work at height, a spanner became disconnected from its DROPS protection lanyard whilst crew were working in an area outside the installed protective netting. The spanner then […]
Equipment Damage: Dropped Object from tiltable lay system
What happened A bracket weighing 10.5kg fell 16m to deck. The incident occurred during a function test of a tensioner on a pipelay system. The tensioner doors had to be […]
LTI finger injury during mooring operations
What happened An AB got his left index finger trapped between a bitt and a mooring rope, resulting in a broken finger and 45 days off work. The incident occurred […]
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