It was morning and the vessel was sailing through heavy weather at Beaufort 8 with large waves hitting the bow. The swell and waves were as high as 12 metres with average waves about 7 metres.

As the weather was so bad the Master had ordered that no one went out onto the outside decks.

The normal routine was that the bosun came up on the bridge around 0700 to discuss the day’s work with the Chief Officer. The Chief Officer didn’t have any specific orders for the day except the normal tasks from the PMS (planned maintenance system). The bosun said he needed some paint from the paint locker by the bow so he could carry out some maintenance on the passageway. The Chief Officer told the bosun it was not a good idea to go forward with large waves hitting the bow and washing over the deck. The bosun said he would walk in the passageway and just sneak out quickly and reach the paint locker. The Chief Officer told him not to do it in the morning but in the afternoon when the heavy weather had calmed down and to do some other jobs instead.

Read more about this case in the latest Monthly Safety Scenario.

For more Loss Prevention information, please contact: 
Joakim Enström, Loss Prevention Officer
E-mail: joakim.enstrom@swedishclub.com

Each month the Club’s Loss Prevention team issues a new safety scenario to assist members in their efforts to comply with international safety regulations and follow best practices.