The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) has secured a win for marine pilot safety, following the successful prosecution of a master and company in the Perth Magistrates Court on 23 May 2023. On 24 August 2022, the Cyprus-flagged cargo ship AAL Dampier (owned by AAL Dampier Navigation Co Ltd) was departing the Port of […]
incident
Is your point strong enough?
The issue of the proper securing of a pilot ladder is one of the main topics of the website pilotladdersafety.com. Using a designated strong point on deck is always the best possible way to go. Given the fact that the combined sideropes have a SWL of 9,6 tonnes, these strong […]
Video: why retrieval lines can be dangerous
Retrieval lines are mainly used – as the name implies – to retrieve the pilot ladder after use. It has often been argued that they can be trip hazards for pilots, getting on- or off the speed tender. The rule of the thumb for the correct use of the retrieval […]
Fall arrestors or not, here’s why not.
When it comes to pilotladder safety, the question sometimes arises on why we don’t use fall arrestors in the pilotage industry. That is a very legitimate question from a shore-based point of view. However with two independent vertically moving platforms – the ship and the pilot tender – that becomes […]
Japanese Pilot dies while boarding a ship
On may 5th, at 0530 in the morning, a 69 year old Japanese pilot fell in the water while boarding the passenger vessel DIAMOND PRINCESS. A message was received by the Nagasaki coastguard station from the pilot boat stating that a pilot had fallen into the water while boarding the […]
USCG issue Safety Alert on handhold arrangements
This Safety Alert addresses the importance of verifying the correct arrangement of handholds in embarkation gate arrangements aboard merchant vessels. The Coast Guard is currently investigating a casualty involving a fall from a pilot ladder where the handholds in the gate arrangement aboard the vessel terminated without being rigidly secured […]
Taichung maritime pilot dies after falling into the sea
Various news sources today report that on February 21st, a 58 year old Taiwanese pilot died while boarding the vessel BLUE OCEAN for her inbound voyage to Taichung. He was located after 40 minutes and recovered from the sea. According to news sources it was a choppy sea at the […]
Compliance by design, failure by operator
It is not often that this blog is used to show bad practice, however in this case some pictures tell a whole story. Ship is compliant by design for rigging a combination. How about the operator(s)? The recessed supporting points are not used for securing the ladder at 1,5 meters […]
Dardanelles pilot accident
Eray Demirkol, one of the Dardanelles Pilots, fell from the pilot ladder into the sea on his way aboard the ship Lord Nelson. Captain Eray Demirkol was reportedly taken to hospital as a precautionary measure. The accident occurred in front of Gallipoli at 19:00 Turkish time. The ship was headed […]