200646 Safety of line handlers

15 Feb 2006 MARS

 

Jetty personnel at a busy private terminal handling a range of bulk carriers and tankers reported that handling the mix of mooring lines on a small bulk carrier was creating a hazardous situation for them. The ship had replaced its old polyprop mooring lines with new, easily handled ropes, except for two headlines.

The ship was a regular runner to the terminal and complaints about these ropes arose after every visit. It was the only ship complained about. The terminal itself is exposed to high winds, a five-metre tidal range and strong currents. The old ropes were heavy and difficult to handle, and had a tendency to get caught under fenders. The use of mixed moorings was also a concern for the terminal.

The matter was discussed between senior terminal representatives and master, but the matter could not be resolved. A note of protest was issued and the owners' marine superintendent duly advised that new ropes were due to be placed on board at the next opportunity.

Following another difficult berthing in bad conditions, when the old ropes caused major problems for the shore crew, further discussions with the master established that he did not believe there was any problem, as 'his crew could handle the ropes easily'. The owners then confirmed that the new ropes were actually on board but that the master had ignored the instructions to replace them. Following a further brief debate between ship and head office, the ropes were replaced.

This incident highlights an attitude typical among some shipmasters, officers and crew who fail to appreciate the effort required by the shore mooring gangs and the risks involved in handling mooring lines at exposed berths, jetties and terminals.

Ships' crews must clearly understand that the following hazards to shore (and ship's) personnel can be controlled by their actions alone:
1. Manual handling risks due sending ashore two or more heavy lines together.
2. Use of weighted monkey's fists.
3. Inadequate assessment of tidal situation and effect of bow thruster, tug and propeller wash when sending lines away.
4. Failure to have anchors home and housed
5. Failure to recognise risk of line boat getting trapped between ship and quay, particularly with onshore wind or tide.
6. Ropes being paid out from winch drums getting trapped and heaved back in, instead of paying out.
7. Lowering too much line too quickly into the water.
8. Sending heavy lines or wires as first lines ashore, often with vessel still moving alongside the berth.
9. Not watching what's happening on the jetty, due to having an adequate number of personnel on bow/stern, making assumptions and failing to warn.
10. Failure to appreciate the risk to shore personnel working within the snap-back zones on the jetty.
11. Tensioning or heaving–in ropes on quick-release hooks, and on small dolphins, without waiting for instructions that shore crew are clear.
12. Heaving in lines at high speed without warning the shore crew, or while they are still in an unsafe position.
13. Not allowing shore crew enough time to get a jammed rope off the bollard before starting to heave it in.
14. Failure to give due regard to difficulties in both taking and letting go wire ropes with fibre tails and Mandel shackles.
15. Failure to consider safety of both ship and shore mooring crew safety when:
      a. Unberthing as the number of lines is reduced and risk of failure increases on remaining lines;
      b. Springing a ship off the berth.

The basic cause of many of these substandard actions is stress or improper motivation on the part of either master, pilot or both, resulting in rushed and hurried operations. The consequences are injuries and accidents to both ship and shore mooring crews. The way to stop it happening is to take a little bit more time to get it right.

 

Editor's note:This report is of particular interest as the vast majority of MARS readers are seafarers and therefore do not readily appreciate the hazards faced by line handlers on the shore during berthing and unberthing operations.

While modern technology has produced wonderful materials for use as ships' mooring ropes, the tendency for each ship to have vastly differing mooring arrangements can pose a serious challenge to line handlers. Steel wire ropes with clumsily attached synthetic fibre rope tails can be particularly hazardous and difficult to handle.
This report is also a timely reminder of the value of a proper briefing before mooring teams proceed to stations.

 
FEEDBACK - Jan 2007: Safety of shore line-handlers
While I acknowledge the hazards faced by line-handlers, it must be pointed out that in some cases the shore gangs make operations difficult by their tardiness etc. It is also not unknown for line-handlers to instruct the ship's crew to send two or more mooring lines ashore simultaneously, and if there is poor coordination between the bridge and the mooring station, the safety of ship, berth and personnel may be compromised. In some terminals where weighted monkey fists are discouraged, the line-handlers promptly sever these from the heaving lines, causing considerable inconvenience to the ship at subsequent mooring operations.

For a berthing vessel, the efficient despatch of a heaving line and the first mooring line on a bollard ashore at either end is of great value in completing the operation safely and efficiently. This is particularly so when operating under adverse weather conditions and with strong currents, and if the ship's handling characteristics are sluggish. Perhaps, as a logical extension of the MARS report, an awareness programme for line-handlers on the difficulties faced by a ship's master or pilot during berthing operations would be of benefit.

I should also mention that in many well-managed terminals, it is customary for an experienced berthing or dock master to control the shoreside operation in close liaison with the pilot. Of course at the other extreme, there are berths where a solitary clueless person handles both the headlines and the stern lines, rushing wildly back and forth, and operating solely on a shouted voice communication system. At such berths, ships often have to wait for the arrival of stevedores so they can tie up in the right position.

 

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