Lax supervision and informal crew practices for lowering lifeboats led to an incident in which two B.C. Ferries workers fell overboard during a training exercise on Spirit of Vancouver Island last year, the Transportation Safety Board says.
In an investigation report released Friday, the board says one crew member was treated for minor injuries, while the other escaped unscathed from the Aug. 31, 2018, incident at Swartz Bay ferry terminal.
The safety board found that the ferry’s rescue boats had been replaced with taller versions that resulted in the launching system being out of adjustment. Crew members adopted informal practices in an attempt to compensate, but that led to a line getting snagged on the day of the incident.
As a result, the rescue boat dropped suddenly, hit the edge of a ferry deck and flung the two crew members out of the boat.
“The coxswain fell approximately 14 m into the water below, while the bowman grabbed hold of the rescue boat’s painter line approximately 4 m above the water,” the report said. The bowman eventually let got of the line and dropped two metres into the water.
The safety board found that the chief officer’s heavy workload at the time of the incident meant that he was unable to supervise the rescue boat station where the accident occurred.
“Although the coxswain of the rescue boat assumed the duties of officer in charge, his ability to supervise was limited as he was actively engaged with his own duties,” the safety board said.
The safety board noted that B.C. Ferries has taken a number of steps to improve safety following the incident, including updating policies, procedures, checklists and quick-reference guides to rescue-boat operations. The company also checked crew proficiency and placed more focus on equipment readiness during audits.
“As a marine-transportation company that is accountable for the safety and security of our customers and our employees, safety is our highest value,” Darren Johnston, B.C. Ferries’ executive director of fleet operations, said in a statement.
“We accept the Transportation Safety Board’s investigation report, and we have taken significant actions to rectify identified hazards to ensure the safety of our employees during our many marine rescue operations.”
In April 2018, two crew members were injured in a similar incident on a B.C. Ferries vessel. A safety board investigation concluded that an insufficient length of rope caused a rescue boat to fall during a drill on the Queen of Cumberland near Swartz Bay terminal.
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