The UK has warned of the dangers of mobile phone use on ships following a probe into the death of a seafarer on a ro-ro ramp last year.
The Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) found that third officer Bartosz Wronski was not aware of a semi-trailer approaching him on the Isle of Man-flagged, 19,700-gt Seatruck Progress (built 2011) at Brocklebank Dock in Liverpool on 19 May 2019.
The vehicle was being pushed ashore by a port tractor unit.
The officer was facing down the stern ramp and talking on his mobile telephone when he was struck.
The tractor unit’s driver was not expecting any pedestrians to be on the ramp and could not see Wronski due to the trailer blocking his view ahead.
The driver stopped immediately, but the third officer was trapped between the trailer’s rear wheels and died at the scene.
MAIB said there was no physical barrier on the stern ramp to segregate vehicles and pedestrians and there were no controls in place to monitor the stern ramp and stop vehicles when pedestrians needed to walk across it.
Danger of distraction
Andrew Moll, the UK's chief inspector of marine accidents, said the incident highlighted two significant safety issues, including issues of phone use.
"Users can too easily become distracted from the tasks they are doing and lose awareness of what is happening around them," he said.
"This accident occurred on the loading ramp of a ro-ro ferry. However, the use of mobile phones in other hazardous work spaces and on the bridge of ships is becoming a serious concern."
The second point he made was the importance of separating moving vehicles and pedestrians on the ramps and vehicle decks of ferries.
"Moving vehicles are a constant hazard during loading and discharge, and if physical separation cannot be achieved, then robust procedural controls must be put in place to prevent people from being injured or killed," Moll said.
Cannabis not a factor
The tractor unit driver was found to have cannabis in his system, but MAIB said this was unlikely to have contributed to the accident.
"Although the use of cannabis by the tractor unit driver was not considered to be a contributory factor in this accident, recreational cannabis use can impair judgement and performance," the agency added. "Random testing had not been carried out by the port operator."
The police had conducted a set of practical roadside tests, which indicated that the driver’s ability to drive was not impaired. The driver also passed an eyesight test.
In September 2017, the 31-year-old was disqualified from driving road vehicles for 12 months following a conviction for driving while under the influence of cannabis.
The disqualification did not apply to driving the ro-ro tractor units.
Since this incident, two other similar ones have been reported on ro-ros.
On 15 August 2019, a chief officer was fatally injured when he was struck by a semi-trailer being pushed on board in Rotterdam. Initial evidence indicates that the officer was standing on the stern ramp and facing towards the vehicle deck, and that the driver did not see him because his view was obscured by the semi-trailer, MAIB said.
Tilbury accident
On 21 January, a shore rigger was killed on a ro-ro at the port of Tilbury in the UK.
He was struck by a semi-trailer as it was being reversed into position on the vessel’s vehicle deck.
Following the Seatruck accident, the UK and Isle of Man marine administrations have been recommended to provide guidance on the dangers of using mobile phones.
Seatruck has introduced a fleet mobile phone policy prohibiting the carriage and use of mobiles on its vessels’ working decks.
This was the second work-related death in 15 months to have occurred on board ferries operated by Seatruck and berthed in Liverpool.
