Person overboard from potter About Time with loss of 1 life
Location: Off the coast of Pembrokeshire, Wales.
Accident Investigation Report 5/2012
Read our marine accident investigation report, which includes what happened, actions taken and subsequent recommendations:
(3,218.13 kb)
Summary
On the morning of 14 June 2011, the 11.9m potting vessel About Time was proceeding towards Milford Haven from her fishing grounds. At some time between 0639 and 0731 (UTC+1)1 , one of the vessel’s deckhands, Māris Ozoliņš, was lost overboard. The accident was not seen by any of the other members of the vessel’s crew and the fact that Māris was missing was not discovered until 0812. Despite an extensive air and sea search, he was not found.
Safety Issues
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it is most likely that Māris fell over the vessel’s starboard bulwark, possibly as a result of tripping or slipping on a large pile of back ropes from three strings of pots that were stowed on the deck
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the deckhand had been wearing flip-flops, which would have increased the likelihood of a slip or trip, and he was not wearing a personal flotation device (PFD) or a personal locator beacon (PLB) when he fell overboard
Recommendations
The owner of About Time has been recommended to take action to improve both the safety of the working practices on board, and the hazard awareness of the vessel’s crew.
This report was published on 8 March 2012.