To the editor:
Depression among seafarers was there long before this crisis, and indeed has in the main been caused by the overindulgence in providing modern media on board and the restrictions on socialising imposed by those on shore.
The availability of internet and email means that seafarers are never disconnected from their homes, and therefore the problems that go along with it. Seafarers — several thousands of miles away — are powerless to resolve these problems, and so they become stressed.
The removal of bars on board vessels, driven by the fears of oil majors over another Exxon Valdez incident, has decimated social life.
This not only destroyed social interaction and increased self-isolation, but it deprived the on-board management team (the master and the chief engineer) of the ability to monitor their crew and pick up at an early stage any warning signals that something was not right, thus enabling an early intervention.
Crew can no longer go ashore for a beer to unwind because if they are found to exceed the (very low) industry guidelines when they return to the ship, they can be sacked on the spot.
People on board now just do their job, have their meals, then go to their cabins behind closed doors to chat on email, WhatsApp etc, loading up on all the problems back home and getting stressed out, or streaming movies all night.
In my sailing days it was much better. We worked hard, played hard and just got on with it. There was fun, friction at times, but everything was well managed, safe, and kept under control by the master and the chief engineer.
Nowadays because owners, managers and charterers are so scared of their own shadows and potential litigation, they have all but stripped the vessels of any soul and the on-board management teams of any decision-making powers.
This has been going on for so long now that many senior officers on board are now incapable of making a decision, having been obliged for so long to refer back to shore for approval.
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