STEP CHANGE FOR SAFETY GLOBAL SHARING SEP 2013 - PILOT LADDERS | Page 9

THE OCCURANCE On 23 October 2012, NORD GOODWILL was moored in buoys at the Tema Offshore Oil Terminal. On the same day, a crew change was about to take place. The transportation to and from Tema was done by launch. To embark the launch, a pilot ladder was rigged from the deck of NORD GOODWILL to about one metre above the surface of the sea. When trying to embark the launch, the ship’s chief engineer fell into the water from the lowest step of the pilot ladder. 10-15 minutes later he was recovered by the launch. After having been recovered, he was rushed to a hospital ashore where he was declared dead on arrival. Sequence of events In the afternoon, the crew members and repairmen to disembark gathered on deck. In order to embark the launch, a pilot ladder was to be used. The launch manoeuvred alongside where the pilot ladder was rigged and the two repairmen went down the ladder first. The chief engineer asked to be the third person to climb the ladder. As he climbed down, the launch was alongside beneath the ladder. When the chief engineer reached the last step, a crew member in the launch got hold of him in order to help him down on the deck. The chief engineer did not let go of the pilot ladder as expected and shortly after the launch went down due to swell. As the boat went down, the crew member in the launch had to let go of his grip. At the same moment, the chief engineer lost his foothold and fell down the pilot ladder until his waist was in the water. He managed to get a grip of the ropes at the last step of the ladder. As the water rose due to swell, he was submerged in water to his chest and, when it fell, he was almost out of the water. The chief engineer tried to climb up the ladder but was unable to do so. After the fall the launch moved away from the ship’s side in fear of squeezing the chief engineer between the launch and the ship’s side. The attempt to rescue the chief engineer The fall of the chief engineer was observed instantly and a lifebuoy hanging at the gangway close to the pilot ladder was thrown into the water. Due to a slight current, the life ring drifted away and the chief engineer was therefore unable to get hold of it. Close to the gangway there was another lifebuoy. The chief officer got hold of the lifebuoy and climbed down the pilot ladder in order to get the chief engineer into the lifebuoy until he could be recovered by the launch. The chief engineer was still holding on to the ropes at the end of the pilot ladder when the chief officer reached him. The chief officer asked the chief engineer to let go of the pilot ladder which the chief engineer did. The chief officer managed to get the lifebuoy around the chief engineer in a correct manner. The chief engineer took an active part in this by diving into the lifebuoy and getting his arms around it. A heaving line was handed to the chief engineer and he was holding on to it. The other end of the heaving line was on board NORD GOODWILL. After having gotten into the lifebuoy, the chief engi-neer did not move or give any sound whilst in the water, but still he was holding onto the heaving line all the time. As it seemed impossible to recover the chief engineer by means of the pilot ladder, the launch was asked to come alongside in order to pick up the chief engineer. It took 10-15 minutes for the launch to manoeuvre alongside. When the launch was alongside, the heaving line was handed over to the crew of the launch from NORD GOODWILL. The oxygen apparatus and the defibrillator were prepared for use, but when they were ready for use, the chief engineer was being pulled away from NORD GOODWILL. It was not an option to use the rescue boat because the razor wire on the superstructure made its launching impossible. The razor wire mounted on the ship in different places was part of the piracy protection. The crew on the launch was asked to pull on the heaving line. Close to the launch, the chief engineer was submerged for a short moment while still in the lifebuoy. His head was under the water for approximately 15 seconds at a distance of 5 metres from the launch. As he was alongside the launch, he was hauled on board with some difficulty. At that time he was still breathing but exhausted. On board the launch, he was placed on his back for a couple of minutes and one of the launch crew members pressed his stomach in a rhythmic way. After some minutes he was placed in a recovery position. At that time, water and white foam were coming out of his mouth. The master of NORDEN GOODWILL contacted the launch by VHF and asked it to proceed to harbour in order to hospitalize the chief engineer. LESSONS LEARNT AND SHARED It is the judgement of the master to decide whether it is safe to transfer personnel between the ship and a launch and as far as possible to assess the launch for its ability to manoeuvre and for its design for use as launch. A proper risk assessment with work instructions must be made. Personnel to be transferred by launch shall wear inflatable life jacket. In cases where the transfer is by barge lying steady alongside persons shall as well be equipped with harness and fall arrester The use of combination shall always be considered whenever possible even if the free-board does not exceed 9 metres.