IMCA provides a summary of its 29 IMCA Safety Flashes published during 2022, noting that they covered 140 individual incidents or events.
According to IMCA, 25% of its members’ incidents or events involved the “Line of Fire” rule. 22% were “By-passing Safety Controls”.
#1 Line of Fire: Of the 19 incidents or events categorised under “Line of Fire”, six were LTIs. Two were dropped objects. Four were finger injuries, three were foot injuries. Other incidents included an AB caught between when a load was lifted suddenly, a person carried overboard when caught by a moving object, and equipment on the quay being damaged by a crane when a vessel started listing.
#2 By-passing Safety Controls: Within the 17 incidents or events categorised under “By-passing Safety Controls”, we see things happening such as a fire door being wedged open, an oil tank sight glass being wired open, unnoticed sub-surface power cables being cut, poorly maintained seals on an emergency hatch, and improperly secured cargo shifting during heavy weather.
#3 Equipment failure accounted for 8 – over 10% – of the incidents or events. Six of these events involved failure of chain hoists, slings, rollers, mooring lines or connections during lifting or mooring operations.
#4 Fire or potential fire was involved in 4 incidents or events: a lifejacket battery caught fire; there was a flash fire on an Oxygen gas quad hose. A USB power bank caught fire and there was a clogged dryer exhaust with potential for a fire. Only one electric shock incident was shared by IMCA members in 2022.
#5 Dropped objects: IMCA members shared three dropped object incidents in Safety Flashes this year. A pipe was dropped from pipe supports; a plate fell from the main mast; and a member took a focus on diverse third party dropped objects including heavy pipes, rigging failures through to nuts and bolts, all having the potential for personal injury.
