Two crewmembers suffered shock, as well as broken ankles, when the cargo lift where the were in fell. The accident happened when the vessel had stopped its operations, during emergency drills and crew training.
The incident
To facilitate the carrying out of emergency drills and crew training, a fishing vessel stopped its operations and buoyed off its hauling line. During this time, four crew members were working in the freezer hold, stowing frozen offal blocks.
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The assistant factory manager, supervising from the factory deck above, gathered the four crew members into the cargo lift and proceeded to lift them up to the main deck to take part in the drills.
When the lift was 1.5m above the tank top, the hoisting wire parted, causing the lift to fall into the cargo hold. Two crew members successfully jumped clear of the lift, back into the freezer hold, however the other two crew members suffered from severe shock and broken ankles.
Probable cause
After the load testing of the cargo lift, it was found out that the load should not exceed 200kg. Crewmembers learned about this at the tool box meeting held prior to the operation.
In this accident, the total weight of people plus offal blocks was 275kg, exceeding the maximum load limit.
This overload damaged to the load bearing block and the breaking of the crane wire cable, causing the cargo lift to drop.
Recommendations
The following measures should be taken to prevent similar incidents:
- Review risk assessment procedures to ensure the effectiveness of tool box meetings. Risks and control measures must be discussed and understood by all.
- Clear and distinguished signage should be displayed near the cargo lift, warning personnel of the load limits.
- Overload indicators and alarms/ cut-off switches must be fitted on critical lifting equipment.
