One of the most surprising aspects of the grounding of a bulker off Mauritius was the revelation that it sailed close to the coast because the crew were searching for a mobile phone or internet connection.
The first reports, leaked to the press by the local police, initially appeared to be an attempt to scapegoat the crew for the disaster involving the 203,000-dwt Wakashio (built 2007).
The narrative of potential crew negligence leading to the grounding of the bulker was enhanced with stories of a birthday party going on at the same time.
But the preliminary official investigation into the accident by the ship’s flag state, the Panama Maritime Authority, has now indicated that a search for an internet connection was a factor.
A picture has emerged of a ship’s crew desperate to speak to family and friends back home. Their need to phone home must have been fuelled by their concerns about the pandemic and the likelihood that they would have to spend extended time on board the vessel because of travel restrictions.
The incident has raised the question of what level of connectivity the ship’s owner, Nagashiki Shipping, was offering to crew during a stressful time for seafarers in general.
The Japanese company is not answering questions on the possible causes of the accident, so, for the time being, that is not clear. “The owner will not comment on these matters until the official process of the law is concluded,” Nagashiki Shipping told TradeWinds.
Mitsui OSK Lines, charterer of the Wakashio, had signed up 100 of its ships to Inmarsat’s Fleet Xpress VSAT satellite services and, in January this year, committed to roll out the service to its full owned and managed fleet. It is not clear whether the service had been extended to the Wakashio.
However, most of the shipping industry is increasingly being equipped with global high-speed internet connection.
Sources estimated that 60% of the merchant fleet has some form of global access to high-speed internet.
Inmarsat, leading supplier to the industry, said it has signed up nearly 10,000 ships to its VSAT high-speed internet and communication services, through which ships can enjoy the same connectivity as a land-based office.
Remote monitoring and operational technology is increasing the demands for modern ships to have a high level of ship-to-shore connectivity.
This can be extended to the crew at little or no extra cost. High levels of connectivity are also viewed as a way to satisfy the crew welfare requirements of the Maritime Labour Convention 2006.
The trend is for shipowners, managers and even crewing agencies to extend crew access to broadband services as a basic welfare measure.
This has been intensified during the pandemic when crew have added concerns about what is happening back home and they are being asked to work for extended periods. Around 300,000 seafarers were affected by the crew crisis.
The heightened demand for connectivity during the pandemic was illustrated by industry figures that show a 35% increase in data usage from ships. On average, ship usage shot up from four gigabytes a day to six gigabytes a day.
Typically crew members are allotted a certain amount of bandwidth during their time on board, but can pay for additional access once allotments have been used up. They pay “a price generally cheaper than mobile phone roaming charges”, one shipmanagement source said.
Managers and crewing agents have viewed connectivity as a key benefit to recruit and retain the services of seafarers, and increasingly they have been stepping in to top up the allocation of bandwidth offered to crew.
To cope with the growth in demand for connectivity, Inmarsat plans to launch seven additional satellites by 2023 to increase bandwidth access for ships and crew and to spread geographical coverage into the Arctic.
One ship communications specialist said: “Crew concerns continue to be a key driver of expansion and there are clear benefits for shipping companies.
“Crew managers see it more and more as an essential service to keep crew motivated and interact with the rest of the world and stay in contact with their family at home, particularly during the pandemic.
“Studies have shown that crew that are suffering from depression or anxiety are twice as likely to be involved in an accident.”