Textbook of Maritime Medicine

Ship safety my cover many different aspects with the ship itself, like hull construction, machinery, equipment, manning, navigation, operations, maintenance, load lines, and a lot of other aspects like maritime search and rescue, emergency communication, maps, traffic control systems, salvage etc.

In this chapter I will limit the discussion to a more restricted definition of ship safety, addressing only ship and crew, dealing only with aspects regarding maritime medicine and maritime health.

5.5.1        IMO instruments – ship safety 

The IMO conventions for for ship safety are listed in table 5.5.1. We will deal with the most important one, one of the four pillars, the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) from 1960.

Some of the other conventions will be mentioned, and others discussed under different subheadings.

Table 5.5.1 Maritime safety conventions of the IMO

The SOLAS convention is generally regarded the most important international convention addressing maritime safety, although the first international treaties date back to the 1860s.

The Titanic disaster of 1912 was the direct incentive that led to the development the SOLAS convention.

 Table 5.5:2: The content of SOLAS 1974 convention

This convention was also the prelude to the Convention establishing the International Maritime Organization, adopted in 1948 in Geneva, and leading to IMO having its first meeting in 1959.

The first major task for IMO was to establish and maintain the 1960 convention, with clear intentions to keep it up to date with successive amendments. It soon became apparent that this was a slow and complex way of maintaining the convention, and in 1974 a complete new convention was adopted, based on the 1960 conventions and its amendments, including a new amendment procedure, making maintenance easier.

Although regarded the most important convention to maritime safety, it is not the most important convention regarding maritime medicine (see table 5.7 for the content of the SOLAS Convention). The most important topic for maritime physicians is the regulations for life saving appliances in chapter three.

There is, however, a long list of conventions addressing ship safety, as listed in Table 5.5.2. Not all of them apply directly to maritime health.

The International Convention of Load Lines (Load Lines 1966), addresses freeboards, draught to which a ship may be loaded,  weathertight and watertight integrity.

The Convention on the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea, 1972 (COLREGs), addresses traffic separation schemes, determining safe speed and making the regulations mandatory, not only as guidance.

The other ship safety conventions of the IMO, namely the CSC, the INMARSAT, the COS-SAR, the SAR, the STCW, the STCW-F will be dealt with under separate subheadings.

5.5.2    The International Management Code for the Safe Operation of Ships and for Pollution. Prevention (the ISM Code)

The human factor is generally regarded as one of the most important causes of accidents at sea, as exemplified by the capsize of “Herald of Free Enterprise” on the 6^th of March 1987, the Scandinavian Star disaster on the 7^th of April 1990 and the capsize of  “Estonia” on the 28^th September 1994.

In 1989 the IMO  adopted “Guidelines on management for the safe operation of ships and for pollution prevention”. In the following years the International Management Code for the Safe Operation of Ships and for Pollution Prevention (the ISM Code) was developed. It was adopted in 1993 by the IMO, and became mandatory from 1998 for all member nations.

The purpose of these guidelines is to provide those responsible for the operation of ships with a framework for the proper development, implementation and assessment of the safety and pollution prevention management in accordance with good practice, to ensure safety, prevent human injury or loss of life, and avoid damage to the environment and property.

A safety management system (SMS) must be established by "the Company", which is defined as the shipowner or any person, such as the manager or bareboat charterer, who has assumed responsibility for operating the ship.

The Company must establish a policy for the purpose of achieving the objectives, including the necessary resources and shore-based support. One or more designated persons ashore shall have direct access to the highest level of the management. Procedures shall be documented and compiled in a Safety Management Manual, a copy of which should be kept on board.

Effective implementation of the ISM Code should lead to a move away from a culture of "unthinking" compliance with external rules towards a culture of "thinking" self-regulation of safety - the development of a 'safety culture'. The safety culture involves moving to a culture of self regulation, with every individual - from the top to the bottom - feeling responsible for actions taken to improve safety and performance.

A possible conflict of interests, though, or a paradoxical result of the ISM code has been discussed in the latest years addressing the fact that the requirements under the ISM Code lead to production of a wide range of documents and reports as a part of the ship’s safety management system (SMS) – documents which also have the potential to incriminate those who produced it.

The International Maritime Dangerous Goods Code (IMDG Code)

The IMDG Code is mandatory funder the SOLAS and MARPOL Conventions. It is intended to be used by the whole shipping industry. It covers not only emergency response (MFAG), but also everything from terminology and labelling to stowage and handling. The code was adopted in 1965, and the last revision was in 2006. 

5.5.3       ILO Instruments – ship safety

None of the ILO conventions addresses specifically ship safety. There are a number of conventions that concern different aspects which may affect ship safety, regarding minimum manning standards, work and rest hours, certification of certain professionals, living and working conditions, access to medical care, service in ports etc.

5.5.4        EMSA activities on ship safety

A number of EC council regulations and directives concerns ship safety, as listed in table 5.5.3

EMSAs regulations addresses the implementation, surveillance and inspection of international conventions, at the same time as it also includes addendums and supplements to international treaties, specific for the European Unions ships, ports and waters.

 Table 5.5.3:  EMSA regulation of ship safety