S A F E S H I P S - C L E A N S E A S SOUTH AFRICAN MARITIME SAFETY AUTHORITY. Stevedore Safety Newsletter. Gautrain being discharged in Durban

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1 SOUTH AFRICAN MARITIME SAFETY AUTHORITY Stevedore Safety Newsletter Gautrain being discharged in Durban Document No: 02/2008 Date: December 2008

Greetings A very belated seasons greetings! I am pleased to report that in the last six months of 2008, SAMSA recorded fewer stevedore casualties than in the first half of the year.

2 Greetings A very belated seasons greetings! I am pleased to report that in the last six months of 2008, SAMSA recorded fewer stevedore casualties than in the first half of the year. This is fantastic news a big well done to those companies who have put in the extra effort. I m sure the current down turn in the economy is going to have a serious negative impact on many stevedore companies BUT what better opportunity to provide refresher safety training while we experience this quiet patch. This issue contains updates on the provisional accreditation of stevedore safety induction training, an overview of stevedore casualties for the last six months, statistics for 2008, the introduction of the Occupational Casualty Reporting Form and stevedore safety posters that SAMSA will be producing for the industry this year. I wish you all the best for 2009 hang on to your hard hats, because I expect its going to be a bumpy ride. Yours in safety Kirsty Stevedore Safety Induction Training In the last newsletter it was mentioned that SAMSA will provide provisional accreditation to those stevedore companies or training institutions who have aligned there stevedore safety training to the amended legislation. I am happy to report that there have been a number of interested queries in this regard. I must stress that you are under no obligation to follow this route, until the amended Maritime Occupational Safety Regulations have come into affect. Also mentioned in the last newsletter is that there is a unit standard for stevedore safety training called Describe Stevedoring in South Africa, SAQA ID Number Please note that SAMSA and TETA accreditation need to be obtained separately. Accreditation with SAMSA does not automatically provide accreditation with TETA and vise versa. Promulgation of Legislation There is no news to report on the promulgation of the amended Maritime Occupational Safety Regulations. They tell me patience is a virtue. Stevedore Casualties Following is a list of stevedore casualties that occurred between July 2008 and December In Durban, on the 01/09/2008, at approximately 01h25 a stevedore attempted to replace a twistlock that had been knocked out of the corner fitting. The Crane Operator was unaware that a stevedore was under the container, refitting the twistlock and lowered the container onto the stevedore. The stevedore sustained severe facial injuries. Do not work under suspended loads. There must be better communication between the Crane Operator and the Signaller, in the event of a twistlock coming out of a corner fitting. If a twistlock needs to be refitted the Crane Operator must move the container to eliminate the possibility of working under a suspended load. The container that was lowered onto a stevedore whilst he was trying to refit a twistlock 2. In Richards Bay, on the 14/09/2008 at approximately 03h40, a welder fell 4 metres from an aluminium ladder to the tank top. He had been attempting to weld a ventilation opening closed. The ladder was being held by two stevedores, but still managed to overbalance. The injured welder had been wearing a safety harness, however there were no safety lines to connect a it to. Rig safety lines for a safety harness to connect to. Use scaffolding or a cherry picker to weld plates aloft, as this may provide a more stabile working platform. 3. In Durban, on the 18/10/2008 at approximately 13h30 a Stevedore Foreman climbed down the ladder from the main deck to the tween deck and was trying to locate the manhole from the tween deck to the lower deck. He did not see that the manhole that was immediately to the right of the ladder and stepped into the manhole whilst trying to locate same, which he thought was further along the tween deck. He fell approximately 10 metres to the lower deck. He sustained several broken ribs and a fractured right shoulder.

Be aware of your surroundings Unguarded openings to be identified during safety inspections and rectified with the crew Ships Lifting Appliances In Durban, on the 24/09/2008, stevedores were loading

3 Be aware of your surroundings Unguarded openings to be identified during safety inspections and rectified with the crew Ships Lifting Appliances In Durban, on the 24/09/2008, stevedores were loading wire rod coils two at a time. Each wire rod coil had a weight of approximately 2 tons and the safe working load of the crane was 25 tons. Two wire rod coils had been safely lowered into the hatch and the crane operator was topping up when the jib fell uncontrolled and landed on the coaming. There was no cargo hooked up at the time of the accident and fortunately no-one was injured. 4. In Richards Bay, on the 20/10/2008 at approximately 09h00, a Crane Operator was attempting to free lifting chains from under a bundle of steel sections. When the chains came loose they swung violently and struck a stevedore on the legs. This resulted in the stevedore falling and striking his head. Although this casualty is still under investigation, some thoughts to prevent a future occurrence Better communication between the Crane Operator and the Signaller. The Signaller to signal to the Crane Operator to free the chains only once all stevedores are well clear of the swinging gear. Thicker dunnage to prevent lifting chains from catching when they released from the bundle of steel 5. In Durban on the 23/10/2008, at approximately 01h30 as crane no 2 was lowering a second tier container, the container knocked a twistlock out of a corner fitting. A stevedore lashing directly below the bay where the container was to be loaded was struck on the base of the skull by the falling twistlock. The stevedore sustained a fractured skull. Lashing operations should not be conducted directly below bays where containers are to be loaded. Supervisors should be more vigilant and check to see if stevedores are working in an unsafe position. 6. In Cape Town, on the 13/12/2008 at approximately 21h40 a stevedore was moving forward to assist with freeing a container spreader from a jammed twistlock. Before he was able to assist with freeing it the spreader was pulled free and swung violently. The swinging spreader knocked the stevedore off a two high container. He sustained a fractured femur. Better communication between the Crane Operator and the Signaller. The Signaller to instruct the Crane Operator to heave up once the stevedore has attended to the jammed twistlock and is standing clear of the lifting gear. Collapsed jib, resting on the coaming Safeguard yourselves by ensuring the following: 5. Ensure that crane operators are certified and experienced. Check that crane operators hired from labour brokers have the required certificates and experience. Ensure that crane operators conduct safety checks on the crane prior to shift commencement and report any problems to the ships crew. Request to see the ships chain register to check when quadrennial and annual inspections have been conducted. Supervisors should regularly check that crane operators are not handling cargo dangerously, operating too fast or recklessly. DO NOT USE CRANES THAT ARE DEFECTIVE Statistical Overview Port 01/08 06/08 07/08 12/08 RBY DBN EL PLZ CTN SLD TTL Half Yearly Comparison

4 Port A total of twenty casualties were reported to SAMSA in 2008, of which two were fatalities, nineteen were serious injuries and one was a non serious injury. Both fatalities and the majority of serious injuries occurred in the first part of the year with the last half of the year showing no fatalities and a decrease in serious injuries. Once again containers proved to be the most dangerous cargo to handle in South Africa. The handling of containers resulted in both the fatalities and eight of the serious injuries. The majority of these fatalities and injuries were as a result of being struck or crushed by suspended containers. During casualty investigations, the lack of communication was highlighted. In many instances, if there had been better communication between the stevedore, the signaller and the crane operator, many of these casualties could have been avoided. The other major cause of stevedore injuries is falling either from containers or from portable ladders. In the last six months there has been an increase in the number of injuries resulting from using portable ladders. You are requested to ensure that portable ladders brought onboard comply with the Occupational Health and Safety Act, 1993 and in addition to assess whether using a ladder is the best tool for the job. Perhaps it would be safer to use scaffolding or a mobile elevated working platform. Lastly, I m happy to report that although serious injuries increased from seventeen in 2007 to twenty in 2008, the number of fatalities decreased from three in 2007 to two in Stevedore Safety Inspections RBY DBN EL PLZ CTN SLD TTL Annual Comparison There are still too many instances of unfenced tween decks - It only takes a momentary loss of concentration or listing of the ship to send a person plummeting to the tank top. Please ensure stevedore supervisors arrange with the crew to fence the tween decks, if the crew are reluctant to do so, SAMSA needs to be contacted. Spot checks on safety talks conducted prior to shift have revealed that they are in a very sorry state, if indeed they are available for inspection. The safety talks that I have seen, seem to be very focused on stevedores wearing their PPE at all times, which is all good and well except there don t appear to be any other hazards that need to be drawn to the stevedores attention. Safety talks are an indication that the foreman in charge or safety officer has inspected the ship, identified the hazards and communicated them to the stevedore gang. If a safety talk can t be produced or I read make sure you are wearing the correct PPE it indicates that the ship has not been inspected for hazards and they clearly haven t been communicated to the stevedores. Lastly, I inspected a ship loading bulk cargo. Not ever having seen the cargo before, I requested the material data safety sheet (MSDS). Unfortunately it could not be provided immediately and it took three days before the manufacturer could forward it.. It was discovered that one of the grades of cargo was hazardous and certain precautions needed to be taken. Please ensure, before handling any bulk cargo or potentially dangerous cargo, that you are in possession of the MSDS and are fully aware of the hazards of the cargo and the necessary precautions to take. Stevedore Compliance Audits The ports of Richards Bay, Durban, East London and Port Elizabeth had a reprieve from audits in Audits will begin again in earnest this year. I shall be contacting you to confirm dates and times. Durban audits have already begun. I look forward to seeing everyone again in the near future. Lifting of Two Empty Containers by One Four-legged Sling Last year a query was raised regarding the safety of discharging two 20ft containers using one four legged chain sling. No reference to this method of handling is made in any of the South African Maritime legislation. Queries were made internationally and it was ascertained that there is an ISO code: ISO 3874 Series 1 Freight Containers Handling and Securing that dealt with accepted methods of handling different types of containers. Nowhere in this code does it mention the handling of two empty containers by a four legged chain and it is recommended that this is not a preferred method of handling containers as the problem with the use of four legged slings going back to a single point is the stress on the legs and, therefore, on the fabric of the container. It is recommended that stevedores handling containers obtain a copy of the abovementioned ISO Standard to ascertain for themselves the acceptable methods of handling containers. The above issue leads me to believe that there is a need to standardise the lifting gear and the method used to handle cargo. This will ensure that cargo is safely handled with the correct gear and that future stevedores have a document to refer to. I have come across a document called Basic Gear & Equipment for Cargo Handling Operations which appears to

be an addendum to the SA Ports Cargo Handling Code of Practice. It is an informative document which needs to be updated and included in the new code and Maritime Occupational Safety Regulations.

These Notices also serve to keep the maritime industry informed about matters of marine interest originating from this department.

5 be an addendum to the SA Ports Cargo Handling Code of Practice. It is an informative document which needs to be updated and included in the new code and Maritime Occupational Safety Regulations. SAMSA Marine Notices SAMSA regularly distribute Marine Notices to inform all interested parties of poor and dangerous practices occurring onboard ships. These Notices also serve to keep the maritime industry informed about matters of marine interest originating from this department. There are a number of Marine Notices that pertain to the stevedoring industry which I would like to draw your attention to. They can be found on the SAMSA website: For ease of reference I have listed them below. I encourage you to access our website and familiarise yourself with them as they may be useful to your operation. Marine Notice Description 18 of 1994 Protection of Hatches / Openings 7 of 1995 Unsafe Working Practices Onboard Ships 12 of 1996 Stevedore Accident: Large Tyres 13 of 1996 Potential Dangers Entering of Cargo Holds Carrying Timber 9 of 2001 Mobile Elevated Working Platforms (MEWPs) Safety Posters A few years ago SAMSA produced safety posters for the fishing industry to highlight various hazards. Similarly, SAMSA have embarked on a project to produce safety posters highlighting some of the common stevedore safety hazards. Once these have been completed they will be made available to the stevedore community for free! Below is an example of a poster produced for the fishing industry. Posters for the stevedore industry will be developed along similar lines. 24 of 2002 Packing of Containers 25 of 2007 Obligation to Report Casualties, Accidents & 10 of 2008 Dangers of Fumigated Cargos 28 of 2008 Stevedore Safety Induction Training 7 of 2009 The Danger of Conducting Hatch Cleaning & Cargo Operations Simultaneously in the Same Hold Reporting Of Incidents & Accidents A reminder that the following serious injuries need to be reported to SAMSA immediately or within 24 hours: a fracture of the skull, spine or pelvis; a fracture of any bone except a bone in the wrist, hand, ankle or foot, or a single rib; the amputation of a hand or foot; the loss of eye sight; frost-bite which can lead to permanent disfigurement; or any impairment of a person's physical condition owing to: the use of machinery; an electrical shock; the exposure to hazardous working conditions or substances the exposure to natural or artificial environmental extremes; and an injury that results in more than 24 hours of hospital admittance Contact Details: Kirsty Goodwin Tel: Fax: kgoodwin@samsa.org.za

Maritime Occupational Safety & Health

Maritime Occupational Safety & Health Newsletter June 2012 10th Edition Contents Page Page 2 General 2 Greetings 3 Stevedore and Ship Repair: Accident Reporting and Investigation 4 Stevedore and Ship Repair: