Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion of this module, you should be able to:
o Discuss the importance of the safety triangle for ships.
o Recognize shipboard hazards and how to control/deal with them.
o Explain the importance of adhering to safe working practices.
o Describe different hazardous areas in ships.
o Recall concepts of safe working practices on board ships.
o Summarize useful methods of working with wires, fibre ropes, and lifting
gears.
o Analyze safe working practices on ship decks during bad weather.
o Relate safe working practices to the usage of electrical equipment.
o List handling tools relevant to hazardous areas in ships.
Tool Safety Precautions
This topic starts with a conceptual framework for developing a safety mindset for
the crew. It identifies the hazardous areas of shipboard work and carious safe
work practices to adhere to while working on board a ship. In developing safety
awareness and personal safety on board, the importance of training and drills
have also been emphasized. It includes the example of abandon ship exercises
and others as part of the regular preparatory activities on board a ship.
Safety precautions when using air-operated tools include:
1. Checking the hose for cracks and other defects,
2. Bleeding pressure before breaking any connection, and
3. Removing any jewellery and loose clothing.
Electrical power tool safety includes:
1. Using only grounded equipment,
2. Wearing eye shields and gloves, and
3. Removing jewellery and loose-fitting clothes. The purpose of a grounded
connection is to prevent electrical shock if the equipment short circuits.
Safety Precautions
o When working around machinery wear safety shoes and ear protection;
remove all jewellery and loose fitting clothing.
o An "Oiler" is also responsible for keeping tools in their assigned places.
Wear safety glasses (i.e., goggles) when using a chisel, grinder, wheel
dressing tool, paint scraper, chipping hammer, or similar tools. Use non-
sparking tools when you are working where explosive gases may be
present. Do not use a chisel with a mushroomed head. Pieces may fly off
when you strike the chisel and injure your eye or other areas. Grind the
head to remove the burrs and chamfer the edges
o Stow compressed gas bottles upright with the caps screwed on so they
won't crash into each other. Protect the cylinders from high heat, flame,
and direct sunlight.
o Never stand in a bight of a line. It may grab or trip you if it suddenly
straightens.
o Always attach a "tag line" to the ends of heavy piping or other loads as
they are lifted so that you can steady the load.
o Before doing maintenance work or breaking a line on any pressurized
system, release the pressure and be sure no pressure remains in the
system.
o Use only a portable droplight with a guard or shield that protects the bulb.
Safety and Incident Triangle
We begin our discussion on safety with some conceptual framework and their
application on a real-life incident on board. Every part of the shipping business is
bounded by stringent regulations, which prompts companies to act in a
disciplined and organized manner. To ensure that all operations are carried out in
an efficient and smooth manner at the sea, the shipping companies resort to
“safety” as their primary focus for streamlining work processes.
The Safety Triangle, also known as the Safety Pyramid, the Heinrich Triangle, and
the Bird Triangle, is a theoretical model that describes a stable ratio between
workplace incidents of varying degrees of severity. The most-recent major Safety
Triangle-type study was undertaken by ConocoPhilips Marine in 2003, and it
placed the Safety Triangle within a modern occupational health and safety
context.
It found that for every single fatality there are at least 30 lost workday cases, 300
recordable injuries, 3,000 near misses (estimated), and 300,000 behaviours not
consistent with proper safety procedures (estimated).
The Safety Triangle model’s conception of a stable ratio between accidents of
varying severity implies that effective hazard controls and safety training will
reduce at-risk behaviours and, in turn, reduce the overall number of severe
accidents. While the specific numbers are debatable, and probably industry-
dependent, the conclusion is clear: a large enough number of unsafe acts
eventually results in a fatality.
Why Should I Track Unsafe Acts and Near Misses?
Tracking low-level events like unsafe acts, near misses etc., gives us insight into the
bottom level of the safety triangle. With enough reports, we can begin to identify trends
and deficiencies in our operations. If we can address the underlying causes of these low-
level events, we can prevent more serious accidents from occurring at higher levels of
the safety triangle.
Using an Incident Triangle as a Safety Measure
o Inaction
o Change
o Condition
Failure to plan a task or follow the job safety analysis as originally developed by the
individuals involved with the task. Inaction can be prevented by stressing the
importance of following the agreed-upon plan. Tell your coworkers that following their
safe work plan is more than just an expectation of the company, it is an expectation of
their families that they return home from work in the same condition (or better) than
when they left.
Introduction to Hazardous Areas in Ships and Safe
Working Practice
On having studied this section, the student (*) will have a fundamental
knowledge of the following topics:
1. Safe Access to Ships and associated Hazards
2. Hazards in moving about the ship and precautions
3. Hazards in entering and working in enclosed/confined spaces and
precautions
4. Hazards for manual lifting/carrying of heavy loads and some precautions
5. Hazards in handling tools and precautions
6. Hazards in welding, gas-cutting, miscellaneous hot work and associated
Precautions continued
7. Hazards caused by painting and precautions
8. Precautions against Dangers while working aloft and over the side
9. Dangers involved in working with electrical equipment and precautions
10. Hazards from exposure to dangerous substances and precautions
Introduction to Hazardous Areas in Ships and Safe
Working Practice (Continued)
o Dangers of using wire and fibre ropes on board and some precautions
o Dangers of using wire and fibre ropes onboard and some Precautions
o Precautions on using Lifting Gear
o Dangers of working in machinery spaces and their precautions
o Hazards in the living accommodation and some precautions
o Hazards and safety precautions on specific vessel types.
(*) – Prima facie it may occur to the student that certain sections of the content
are applicable more specifically to the Nautical stream. Experience has shown
that as far as shipboard hazards are concerned, there are not many areas that
can be said to be relevant either to Engineers or to Nauticals. All seafarers are
broadly vulnerable to the hazards of the sea, the ship and their operations.
Safe Access to Ships and Associated Hazards
Means of Access
o There should be a safe means of access between any ship and any quay,
pontoon or similar structure or, another ship alongside which the ship is
secured
o Seafarers should be provided with adequate information on how to make
their way safely to and from the ship through the marine terminal or shore
side cargo handling area. In some modern ports access equipment on safe
means of access are provided by the port authorities. However, the Master
should ensure, as far as possible, that the equipment meets the required
safety standards.
o Seafarers should not use a means of access that are unsafe. They should
also use means of access with care, e.g. they should make several trips or
use a stores crane when carrying personal gear, stores or ship's
equipment rather than attempting to carry too much at once.
o All-access arrangements should be supervised at all times, either by
seafarers or by shore personnel, particularly in ports that have large tidal
ranges. Access should generally be by an accommodation ladder or
gangway which is appropriate to the deck layout, size, shape and
maximum freeboard of the ship.
o Any access equipment should be of good construction, sound material,
adequate strength, free from obvious defects, properly maintained and
inspected at frequent intervals. It should not be painted or treated to
conceal cracks or defects.
Means of Access (Continued)
o Access equipment should be placed in position promptly after the ship has
been secured and remain in position while the ship is secured. A lifebuoy
with a self-activating light and a separate safety line or some similar
device should be provided at the point of access aboard the ship. All-
access equipment and the approaches to such equipment should be
properly illuminated.
o Seafarers should use only the appropriate equipment for ship access. As
far as is practicable, access equipment should be kept free of any snow,
ice, grease or other substance likely to cause a slip or fall. Any gap
between the dockside and the ship, whereby a person on the ship's means
of access might fall into the water, should be protected by a safety net, of
suitable size, mesh and construction, secured to the ship and dockside, as
appropriate.
o The means of access and its immediate approaches should be kept free
from obstruction and, as far as practicable, kept clear of any substance
likely to cause a slip or fall. The means of access should be sited so that
no suspended load passes over it.
o Gangways and accommodation ladders should be clearly marked with the
maximum permitted angle of use and maximum safe loading in both
numbers of persons and total weight. Under no circumstances should this
limit be exceeded.
Ship's Accommodation - Ladders and Gangways
Any accommodation ladder or gangways should be:
1. At least 55 cm in width; and
2. Provided with stanchions and taut rails, chains or fencing on both sides.
o Stanchions should not be more than 3m apart and properly secured to
avoid inadvertent displacement.
Ship's Accommodation Ladders and Gangways
o An Unguarded Gangway
Fencing should be at least lm high, with an intermediate rail or chain at a height of
about 50 cm.
The accommodation ladder or gangway should be so constructed that ordinary changes
in the ship's draught or height above the quay can be easily accommodated.
Where practicable, accommodation ladders should have a swivel top platform, slip-
resistant treads and wheels or rollers at the bottom. Any necessary adjustment should
not tilt the treads or steps to such an extent that they cease to offer a firm foothold.
Duckboards should be fitted to provide a secure foothold at small angles of inclination.
The gap between the top of the gangway or ladder and the ship should be protected on
each side by handrails, taut chains or other suitable means, with intermediate chains at
a height to match the handrails and intermediate protection of the gangway.
If the upper end rests on or is flush with the top of a rail or bulwark, substantial and
properly secured steps fitted with an adequate handrail should be provided to ensure
safe passage to and from the gangway.
SAFE ACCESSES TO A SHIP: THE GANGWAY IS GUARDED
Where practicable, accommodation ladders should not be used at a greater angle to the
horizontal than 55 degrees.
If the gangway rests on rollers or wheels, it should be fitted or protected in such a way
as to prevent the user's feet from being caught and it should be placed in a position
that does not restrict the free movement of the rollers or wheels.
A gangway should never be permitted to drop between the shore and the ship in such a
way that it may be crushed or damaged.
Special care should be taken during maintenance to detect any cracking, rusting or
corrosion in gangways, ladders and metal fittings. Any defects posing a hazard should
be made good before further use.
Ladders
Portable Ladders
A portable ladder should not be used for access to a vessel unless a safer means of
access is not reasonably practical. Portable ladders should be of good construction,
adequate strength and properly maintained.
When a Ladder Is in Use:
The top should rise at least 1 m above the landing-place;
Each upright should rest properly on a firm and level footing; and
It should be properly secured against slipping, falling or sideways shifting. The ladder
should be used at an angle of between 60 and 75 degrees from the horizontal.
Pilot Ladders
The requirements for pilot ladders and mechanical pilot hoists found in SOLAS,
1974, Chapter V are to be observed.
Hazards in Moving About the Ship and Precautions
General Precautions
Seafarers should move about a running ship, bearing in mind the possibility of an
unusual lurch or heavy roll of the ship, while at sea.
Permanent fittings which cause an obstruction and which may be dangerous to vehicles,
lifting appliances or persons should be made conspicuous by means of colouring,
marking or lighting.
Any deck obstructions and head-height obstructions that are a hazard should be painted
a bright or any conspicuous colour.
Where necessary, warning notices should be posted. Graphic symbols should be utilized
where possible.
Head-height obstructions should be padded.
The stowage of deck cargoes should take account of the requirements for safe access to
crew quarters, for the crew working on the ship, for boarding of pilots, and access to
safety equipment.
PASSAGEWAYS AND WALKWAYS
All passageways, walkways, stairs and all deck surfaces used for transit should be
properly maintained and kept free from materials or substances liable to cause slips or
falls.
Transit areas should, where practicable, be provided with a surface that is slip-resistant
in dry as well as in wet conditions.
Walkways on deck should be delineated by painted lines or otherwise and indicated by
signs.
Any gear or equipment stowed to the side of a passageway or walkway should be
securely fixed or lashed against the movement of the ship when at sea.
When rough weather is expected, lifelines should be rigged securely across open decks.
