Parting of trawl wire on converted scallop dredger Olivia Jean with 1 person injured
Location: 17nm south south east of Beachy Head, England.
Accident Investigation Report 10/2010
Read our marine accident investigation report, which includes what happened, actions taken, and recommendations:
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Summary
On 10 October 2009, a fisherman was injured by a falling bridle chain on board the fishing vessel Olivia Jean when the port side main trawl wire parted as the trawl beam was lifted inboard. The fisherman sustained chest injuries and was airlifted to hospital.
Safety issues
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poorly maintained fishing equipment and no evidence of systematic planned maintenance
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the vessel failed stability criteria for a number of structural reasons and was being operated in a manner that further reduced stability margins
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nine crewmen were on board, despite the vessel being limited to a maximum of six
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crew were working long hours, with few breaks
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documentation, records and evidence of risk assessment were missing
Recommendations
A recommendation has been made to the owner of Olivia Jean to review the working practices on board his fleet, and to ensure that lessons are learned from this and previous accidents. The MCA has been recommended to take into consideration the findings of this investigation when assisting the Department for Transport to address MAIB recommendation 2010/112 (MAIB report 6/2010).
This report was published on 26 August 2010.