Hot work related Accident

The tanker was in ballast and had quite a long voyage before she would reach her next port of call. During one of the weekly onboard work planning and maintenance meetings, a suggestion was made to take advantage of the ballast condition and do some minor hot work on the deck.

The Captain approved the hot work and it was decided that the physical work was to be undertaken by the fitter under supervision by the Chief Officer. As the welding commenced on a butterworth lid, all of a sudden they heard an alarming hissing sound and the two crew members started to run in opposite directions. Then a huge explosion occurred which caused massive damages to the ship, and more sadly the blast killed one of the crew members.


DISCUSSION:

Because of the risks involved in hot work there are always a set of safety precautions that should be thoroughly followed. These protective actions are different from ship owner to ship owner, but they all serve the same goal – they are put in place in order to minimise the risks. During the weekly maintenance meeting the welding was suggested as a good idea because of the ballast situation of the ship. But hot work allowance was not within the powers of the Master to decide. The final approval for hot work was to be made by the Ship Managers Office, but they unfortunately were never involved. Several safety measures were broken and the Masters approval was the first.

All of the necessary safety measures were well described in the company’s procedures. Nevertheless, they where ignored by the crew. Obvious crucial conditions like making sure the fans where running properly, to make sure the tank area was over pressurised and that adjacent areas were prepared were all ignored.

In this case the crew’s ignorance resulted in loss of life, an absolutely unacceptable outcome. The risks involved in hot work are well known and this is why the safety measures are numerous and the procedures rather rigid. But no procedures are stronger than the weakest link, and here the human element seems to be the root cause. When a ship is on a very long voyage between ports, boredom may easily overwhelm the crew. Mixed with a portion of leadership complacency and a strong hierarchy onboard, tragic incidents like this may be explained, but could never be accepted. Strong and robust procedures should still be kept in place, but in addition boredom and complacency of the crew should be focused as yet another risk factor. Managers, both onboard and ashore, should continuously address the potential risks embedded in the individuals.


USEFUL EXPERIENCE

■Be aware when you are bored or tired
■If something doesn’t seem right – it probably isn’t.

Source: Norwegian Hull Club - Casualty information