The UK MAIB has reported an incident happened onboard a small creel fishing vessel while a self-shooting arrangement was used on the vessel to deploy its creels. Normally, one fleet was worked on deck at a time. However, two fleets were worked when moving grounds causing crewman dragged overboard and subsequently deceased.
After separately hauling and re-shooting two fleets of creels, two further fleets were then hauled and stowed on deck in preparation for shooting in a new position. After deploying the first of the two fleets and manoeuvring the vessel into position for deploying the second fleet, the skipper instructed the crewman to release the fleet’s first weight.
As the creels deployed, the crewman lifted down the upper two tiers of creels from the rows that were stacked four-high. This required him to step across the back rope. The skipper remained in the wheelhouse and monitored progress by glancing aft through the wheelhouse door.
The skipper became temporarily distracted, after which he looked aft and could no longer see the crewman on deck. He immediately left the wheelhouse to check the area aft of the wheelhouse. He noticed that weight was coming onto the buoy line and that the deck was otherwise clear. He then put the buoy line onto the hauler and started to turn the vessel around when he saw the crewman face-down in the water about 50 metres from the vessel. The skipper quickly manoeuvred the vessel alongside the crewman and recovered him on board through the shooting doorway.
Noting that the crewman was not breathing, the skipper transmitted a “Mayday” on VHF radio channel 16, which was acknowledged by the coastguard. He then began cardiopulmonary resuscitation and, after a short while, was assisted by the crews of other fishing vessels who had responded to the emergency. The crewman was then transported by helicopter to a local hospital where, sadly, he was pronounced deceased.
Lessons Learned
1. It was concluded that the crewman’s right leg probably became caught in the buoy line at a time when the skipper was distracted in the wheelhouse, and that he was then dragged overboard.
The main safety benefit of a self-shooting arrangement is that it keeps the crew clear of the back rope and therefore reduces the risk of them becoming caught in the running gear. With only one fleet of creels stowed on deck, the creels deployed without need for manual intervention so it was possible for the crewman to stand in a position where he did not have to step across the back rope, or the buoy line, at any stage of the operation.
However, to enable stowage and working of two fleets on deck, creels had to be stacked higher and immediately aft of the wheelhouse. This reduced the amount of free deck space and removed the separation between the crewman and the running gear. Importantly, it also required the crewman to repeatedly step across the back rope to lift down the upper tiers of creels to prevent the stack collapsing and becoming entangled, and to step across the buoy line to release the second marker buoy.
While changes had been made to the system of work to enable the stowage of a second fleet of creels on deck, insufficient changes had been made to the shooting operation to adequately control the consequent additional risks of the crewman becoming entangled in the running gear.
2. The skipper had completed a risk assessment. However, it had neither been written down, nor had it identified adequate control measures to address the additional risks posed when working two fleets of creels. Had a more formal process of risk assessment and review been carried out, the additional risks to the crewman might have been given greater priority and a safer system of work identified.
3. Although PFDs were provided on board, the crewman never wore one, and the skipper only wore one when working the vessel single-handedly. While working on board together, neither of them considered the risk of falling overboard while on deck at sea to be sufficiently high to warrant their wearing a PFD.
While a PFD would not have prevented the crewman from falling overboard, it might well have reduced the time that he was under water, and turned him into an upright position with his airway clear of the water once he had surfaced.
4. The potential need for immediate assistance is particularly important when a lone crew member is left to recover a man overboard from the sea. At the risk of delaying the skipper’s immediate rescue effort by a few seconds, it would have been possible for him to transmit a DSC alert while manoeuvring the vessel towards the crewman. This would have notified the coastguard to the emergency and the vessel’s position, enabling search and rescue assets to be mobilised immediately.
Source & Image credit: UK MAIB Safety Digest 2/2016
