Trawler's crew member was trapped by collapsing crane

NEW regulations for installing and operating articulated hydraulic deck cranes have been recommended, following a marine investigation into an accident on board a West Cork fishing vessel.

The Marine Casualty Investigation Board (MCIB) examined the accident on board the fishing vessel Aquila in 2021, in which a crewman was injured.

The accident happened on November 7th 2021, when the Union Hall-based vessel was fishing an area south of the Kinsale gas rigs.

The crew were hauling catch using the vessel’s net handling crane when the crane’s jib and power head suddenly lowered, trapping a crew member on the deck.

The Aquila’s skipper contacted the Coast Guard who airlifted the injured crew member to Cork University Hospital where he was treated for back and groin crush injuries.

He was discharged from the following day and flew home to the Philippines to recover. He has since returned to work as a fishermen on board an Irishregistered fishing vessel.

‘The Minister for Transport should give consideration to the introduction of regulations specific to the installation and operation of articulated hydraulic deck cranes to mitigate against the risk of harm, and improve the safety of the fishing vessel and its crew,’ the MCIB report said.

The report also recommended a marine notice safety sheet should be made available to owners of fishing vessels setting out the hazards associated with the operation of articulated deck cranes in deck areas.

The report noted that ‘Health and Safety training specific to the operation of articulated hydraulic deck cranes on board fishing vessels in the 15–24m Irish fleet is not available, as neither the Marine Survey Office or the Health and Safety Authority have published any information advising owners and operators of this type of crane of a requirement for operator training or competency specific to the operation of marinearticulated deck cranes onboard fishing vessels.’

The report also called on the crane’s manufacturers Thistle Marine to review the pipe connecting arrangements of valve blocks onto the hydraulic cylinder ports on the BK7 model of marine cranes, with a view to reducing the risk of mechanical damage causing oil leaks and sudden loss of hydraulic pressure in the operating hydraulic cylinders.