Safety Violations News

The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) has banned the Liberian-flagged bulk carrier KMAX Leader from entering Australian ports for 12 months, effective February 15, 2024.The ban was instigated as a result of serious safety violations and breaches of Australian legislation committed by the ship’s master and owner while in Gladstone Harbour.KMAX Leader first experienced mechanical issues on October 26, 2023, reporting unidentified engine room vibrations.On October 28, the ship’s agent advised work had commenced on the mechanical issues and would take eight to 10 days to complete.

The maritime industry accounts for more than 90% of global trade and employs over 3 million people in the United States, and like other modes of transportation, our industry encounters unique risks. Waterfront workers are exposed to various hazards such as heavy machinery, hazardous substances, extreme weather and long hours. If not properly managed, these hazards can result in serious injuries, illnesses and even fatalities. That is why ensuring the safety of waterfront workers is a top priority for all of us who work in the maritime industry.

The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) has issued its third ban from Australian waters to a Briese Heavylift GmbH & Co ship this year.AMSA issued the 90-day ban to the Antigua & Barbuda-flagged general cargo ship BBC Jade, after inspectors in Port Alma found 57 tons of explosive substances had been incorrectly stowed on board the vessel during transit.The International Maritime Dangerous Goods (IMDG) Code outlines the minimum international standards for the maritime transport of dangerous goods…

An Antigua Barbuda-flagged general cargo ship has been banned from Australian waters over serious safety deficiencies. The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) said it issued a 180-day ban on the Briese Heavylift GmbH & Co vessel BBC Pearl as the agency works to crack down on unsafe and unseaworthy vessels.after inspectors found multiple failures of the safety management system as well as a defective emergency generator and defective fire dampers during a port State control…

A federal judge in Los Angeles on Friday dismissed the criminal indictment against a dive boat captain charged with manslaughter in the deaths of 34 people when the vessel caught fire and sank off the California coast three years ago.The 75-foot (23-meter) Conception caught fire while most of those onboard were sleeping, killing 33 passengers and a crew member. It is considered one of California’s worst maritime disasters.U.S. District Judge George Wu said in a ruling that the indictment…

The captain of a dive boat that caught fire last year near Santa Cruz Island, resulting in 34 deaths, was indicted Tuesday by a federal grand jury on 34 counts of seaman’s manslaughter.Jerry Nehl Boylan, of Santa Barbara, was named in the indictment by a federal grand jury that alleges Boylan, as the captain and master of the Santa Barbara-based Conception, “was responsible for the safety and security of the vessel, its crew, and its passengers.”The indictment alleges that Boylan caused the deaths of 33 passengers and one crewmember “by his misconduct…

The majority of NY Waterway ferries taken out of service for safety violations last month have returned to regular operations, the U.S. Coast Guard said.On November 24, the Coast Guard revealed that Sector New York marine inspectors determined that 23 of NY Waterway's 32 ferries had damage or discrepancies significant enough to warrant a suspension of service. Findings included inoperable fixed fire extinguishing systems and bilge alarms; expired lifesaving equipment; and structural damage affecting watertight integrity.As of December 12…

The captain of a Russian oil tanker is forced to pay £25,761.99 (more than $34,300) in the U.K. for breaching the International Safety Management (ISM) Code in a prosecution brought by the Maritime & Coastguard Agency (MCA).Vitaliy Trofimov, Captain of the Russian registered 85-meter-long tanker Tecoil Polaris, pleaded guilty at Hull Magistrates Court on Thursday to a number of safety failures which placed the vessel – to be loaded with 1,665 metric tons of lubrication oil – at risk. He was fined £1,400 and ordered to pay £24,361.99 in costs.The vessel arrived at Humber Port on the evening of Tuesday, June 5, 2018 having come from Hamina, Finland.

Three commercial fishing vessels operating throughout Puget Sound were ordered to return to port Wednesday after U.S. Coast Guard boarding teams discovered multiple safety violations. Following the boardings, the Coast Guard Captain of the Port for Sector Puget Sound sent the three crews back to port to correct deficiencies and complete a satisfactory dockside safety examination with Coast Guard personnel. In the first instance, a boarding team from Coast Guard Cutter Osprey reported several safety discrepancies on the 27-foot commercial fishing vessel Wendy Sue, including insufficient fire extinguishers, no documentation and no sound-producing device.

The 685-foot Liberian-flagged containership Westwood Robson is being held in port after significant safety violations were discovered by Port State Control officers from U.S. Coast Guard Sector Puget Sound during an inspection at the Husky Terminal in the Port of Tacoma, Thursday. The inspection revealed excessive oil in the bilge holding area, oil-soaked lagging present throughout machinery spaces and clogged oil drains, creating a significant risk of fire, the Coast Guard said. Mechanical issues included deteriorated fittings that contributed to oil and coolant leaks as well as inoperable oil purifiers. The vessel and crew must are required to stay in port until the deficiencies have been corrected to the satisfaction of Coast Guard inspectors and the Classification Society.

Containership Lowlands Kamsar has been detained by U.S. Coast Guard personnel in Seattle, Monday, after a Port State Control exam detected several safety violations. The Lowlands Kamsar a 751-foot, Panamanian-flagged ship will remain in Sector Puget Sound's Captain of the Port zone until the violations are corrected, the Coast Guard said. During the exam Coast Guard Port State Control officers discovered that the automatic fire extinguishing system that protects the vessel’s engine room had been disabled by the crew, additionally, the vessel’s owner, Misuga S.A., failed to ensure that appropriate corrective action was taken. The crew of the ship was conducting cargo operations in Seattle at the time of the exam. Lt.

U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) Sector Puget Sound investigating officers initiated civil penalties, Friday, against four individuals who entered an established safety-zone around a Shell-contracted vessel in Bellingham during Memorial Day weekend. Cody Erdman, Chiara D’Angelo, Paul Adler and Matthew Fuller were cited in accordance with Code of Federal Regulations for entry into or staying in a federally-regulated safety zone between May 22 and 24. USCG officials can seek a maximum civil penalty of $40,000 for each entry into the zone or day the individuals violated the zone. The final penalty will be determined by the Coast Guard Hearing Office in Arlington, Va. Hearing officers will be assigned and provide the individuals an opportunity to refute the charges or provide evidence on their behalf.

The U.S. Coast Guard detained the Ikan Sudip, a Panamanian-flagged 600-foot bulk carrier, after discovering significant environmental and safety violations during an inspection in Astoria. The violations included a failure to use engineering procedures required by U.S. and international law, a lack of crew familiarity with emergency rescue drills, deficient structural fire boundary doors, and inoperable lifesaving equipment, according to the Coast Guard. Vessel inspectors from the Coast Guard Marine Safety Unit (MSU) in Portland discovered the discrepancies during an inspection of the motor vessel, which was built in 2004. “The Ikan Sudip’s safety and environmental conditions posed an unacceptable threat to our waterways,” Capt.

The U.S. Coast Guard detained the 600-foot bulk carrier vessel Ikan Sudip, after discovering significant environmental and safety violations during an inspection in Astoria, Ore. Saturday. Vessel inspectors from the Coast Guard Marine Safety Unit in Portland discovered the discrepancies during an inspection of the Panamanian-flagged motor vessel, which was built in 2004. “The Ikan Sudip’s safety and environmental conditions posed an unacceptable threat to our waterways," said Capt. Dan Travers, Coast Guard Sector Columbia River Commanding Officer and captain of the port for Oregon and Southern Washington. While inbound to U.S. waters, Monday, the vessel experienced two separate fuel related propulsion losses within 24 hours, which completely disabled the vessel at sea.

A 738-foot motor vessel Kind Seas was detained by the U.S. Coast Guard after significant safety violations were found during an inspection in Kalama, Washington, Friday. Discrepancies were discovered by Portland’s Coast Guard Marine Safety Unit vessel inspectors during a routine inspection of the 1998-built Marshall Islands-flagged bulk carrier vessel. Safety violations were related to a complete failure of the emergency generator, which provides power to emergency equipment including the emergency firefighting pump system. Other discrepancies include deficient structural fire boundary doors designed to prevent the spread of a fire, inoperable bilge pumps critical to removing excess water and waste oil accumulation in engine compartments, and inoperable life saving communication equipment.

Firefighters at Zvyozdochka shipyard in Russia's northern province of Arkhangelsk partially flooded a nuclear-powered submarine to extinguish a blaze that started aboard the vessel. The vessel - classified as Oscar-II by NATO - is a cruise missile type sub which carries nuclear material and has two reactors aboard. There were no weapons on board of 949 Antei submarine, the vessel's nuclear reactor had been shut down prior to the blaze and nobody was hurt, said the state-owned United Shipbuilding Corporation which runs the Zvyozdochka shipyard where the 155-metre (500 ft) 949 Antei submarine was being repaired. Initial efforts to put…

U.S. Coast Guard personnel on Monday detained the oil tanker Overseas Jademar in Port Angeles after several safety violations were discovered during a port state control exam. Marshall Island-flagged tanker Overseas Jademar was en route from Malaysia to Anacortes, Washington to offload cargo when Port State Control officers from Sector Puget Sound found several significant safety violations during a port state control exam. The ship will remain detained in Sector Puget Sound's Captain of the Port zone until the safety violations are corrected. The deficiencies found onboard included nonfunctioning distress signaling equipment and fire safety systems.

Coast Guard personnel detained the tanker Overseas Jademar in Port Angeles, Monday. Port State Control officers, from Coast Guard Sector Puget Sound, discovered several significant safety violations during a port state control exam of the Marshall Island-flagged tanker, which will remain detained in Sector Puget Sound's Captain of the Port zone until the safety violations are corrected. The deficiencies found onboard included non-functioning distress signaling equipment and fire safety systems. The electronic position indicating radio beacon, an essential piece of distress equipment that notifies authorities of the crew's location in the event of an emergency, was found non-functional.

The U.S. Coast Guard said it detained the 579-foot motor vessel  Strategic Synergy, Tuesday, requiring the vessel to remain in Portland until numerous safety violations are corrected by the ship’s crew. The Strategic Synergy, owned by SBC Synergy PTE. LTD., intends to load grain in Portland and will depart for Ecuador after the safety violations have been met. Port State Control Officers from the Coast Guard Marine Safety Unit in Portland discovered the discrepancies during a routine inspection of the newly constructed Singapore-flagged vessel. Strategic Synergy’s voyage to the United States was its maiden voyage after completing construction in China on April 23, 2014.

The Coast Guard detained the motor vessel Great Success, Tuesday,  requiring the vessel remain in Longview, Wash., until numerous safety violations are corrected by the ship’s crew. Port State Control officers from Coast Guard Sector Columbia River’s Marine Safety Unit in Portland, Ore., discovered the discrepancies during routine inspections of the 553-foot Hong Kong-flagged vessel in Kalama, Wash., Monday and Longview on Tuesday. Most safety discrepancies were related to fire danger and included excessive oil and oily water mixture in the bilges…

It has been over three years since the tragic accident occurred aboard the Deepwater Horizon on April 20, 2010. The industry and the relevant federal agencies have done much to put in place improved safeguards to prevent such an accident – which left 11 dead and 17 injured – from happening again. Congress, on the other hand, has done little to intervene to force new requirements on either the federal government or industry. Meanwhile, energy-related work in the Gulf of Mexico is rapidly increasing and forecasts are that it will remain busy for the next few years.

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) recently cited a shipyard for 61 alleged violations of workplace safety and health standards. Faced with $293,450 in proposed fines, the shipyard’s alleged violations include electrical hazards, such as failure to guard lights from damage, failure to provide effective electrical grounding for equipment, failure to provide covers on electrical box openings, and failure to ensure wiring was protected from abrasion and strain.

The charity Beauchamp Lodge Settlement has been ordered to pay £3,330 in fines and costs after pleading guilty to operating a passenger vessel in London without a valid Passenger Certificate, the U.K. Maritime and Coastguard Agency reported. The vessel Beauchamp is a barge operated by the charity as a floating classroom for children and young people. It can also be hired for events, such as parties and weddings, and is capable of carrying up to 80 passengers as it travels along the Grand Union Canal.