SINCE 2020, 345 serious crew injuries have been reported to the Australian Maritime Safety Authority from regulated Australian vessels and foreign flagged vessels in Australian waters.

That’s the grim statistic headlining AMSA’s Maritime Safety Awareness Bulletin 21, which outlines how effective risk assessments can help prevent accidents onboard.

A total of 74 incidents were reported in 2024, with serious crew injuries accounting for 38.7% of all reported injuries with a slight increase since 2022.

Proportion of reported serious crew injuries by year. Source: AMSA

“Subjective assessments of risks in day day-to-day shipboard operations, such as working at heights or over the side, can impact behaviour. Sometimes seafarers may perceive the risk as low and take more risks than they need to. In these situations serious incidents are more likely to occur,” AMSA advises.

“Risk assessment is a key part of the vessel’s safety management system under the International Safety Management (ISM) Code. But assessments only work if risks are correctly identified and effective safety measures are implemented.”

AMSA says an effective risk assessment should:

  • Identify all types of risks on board. Consider how different factors influence the way people respond to risk.
  • Involve crew members with different experiences. A diverse team helps spot more hazards and improves the adoption of safety measures.
  • Use levels to put strong controls in place. First, try to remove the hazard – the safest option. If that’s not possible, find a safer option or use administrative measures to lower risk.
  • Monitor and review controls regularly. This keeps them effective, relevant and current.

The authority provides two illustrative case studies.

  1. A crew member fell into the cargo hold from a vertical ladder and sustained fatal injuries on a bulk carrier bound for Adelaide. At the time of the casualty, the vessel was rolling with an amplitude of around five degrees, the hatches were shut. The crew member who was preparing the cargo hold to load grain was not wearing a climbing harness. The investigation found that the company’s risk assessment did not fully identify all ship or task-specific hazards associated with cargo hold preparation. The safety manual identified the holds’ vertical ladders as an “emergency exit only” and risk assessments required the use of a climbing harness when using them to climb higher than two metres. However, the policy was not effectively communicated or enforced.
  • A crew member was working alone in the cargo when he fell 8m to the tank top from an unprotected platform and was fatally injured. The investigation found that the crew member was not wearing a harness or any other fall protection device. The risk of falling was not obvious to the crew onboard and there were no risk control measures identified by the company. The risk assessment forming part of the safety management system did not include any assessment of risks for work in cargo holds, access/egress that includes risk of falling or working alone.

“A good safety culture supports an effective shipboard safety management system. Such a culture can help seafarers apply safe practices at all times, both during work and recreational activities on board,” AMSA concludes.