Spill Prevention & Response: Old Lessons, New Challenges
Emerging spill response trends fit into two big categories: technology and a combination of economic and social forces. Both will shape what comes next.Florida’s stunning Tampa Bay stands out as exactly the kind of place where you have to think about hazardous materials emergencies. It was 25 years ago, on August 10, 1993, that a freighter collided with two barges near the entrance of Tampa Bay, causing a fire and spilling over 32,000 gallons of jet fuel, diesel, and gasoline and about 330,000 gallons of heavy fuel, devastating beaches, wildlife and habitat.
IUMI: Containership Fires Need Study
Two recent onboard containership fires have fueled concerns from IUMI (International Union of Marine Insurance) over the challenges involved with managing these incidents at sea. "At sea, below-deck fires cannot be fought with water and so CO₂ is used instead to displace the oxygen and extinguish the fire," said Uwe-Peter Schieder, Vice Chairman of IUMI’s Loss Prevention Committee. "However, if the fire is burning within a container, the box will protect it from the CO₂ and so this method of fire-fighting is rarely successful.
Aquatic Nuisance Species Task Force to Meet
The Aquatic Nuisance Species Task Force/National Invasive Species Council (NISC) Prevention Committee, sponsored by the Fish and Wildlife Service, will meet in Washington, DC on May 4. Items on the agenda include review and approval of the Roles and Responsibilities draft document; identification of the Prevention Committee member’s responsibilities to the five working groups; and discussion of actions required to get working groups functioning. 69 Fed. Reg. 21569 (HK Law).
IUMI 2006 Conference to Focus on Claim Reduction
Marine insurance claims are escalating. As a result, underwriters are adopting a much more active role in assessing the risks they are asked to cover in renewed efforts to reduce and control claims. The decision was taken by IUMI’s executive committee which met in London, and is being relayed to the worldwide membership. The chosen theme will run through the conference program, the planning of which is largely the responsibility of IUMI’s seven technical committees. These will meet in Berlin in April. There have been two changes among the committee chairmen. Lloyd’s underwriter Dominic Hoare now chairs the energy and offshore committee, and another Lloyd’s underwriter, Quentin Prebble, heads the loss prevention committee.
