Maritime Safety Week brings focus to fishing accidents and RYA app

Maritime Safety Week is currently taking place from 4-8 July. The annual event is held by the Department for Transport to encourage the sharing of safety knowledge within the sector and to highlight the importance of following best practices when spending time on the water.

Conservative MP for Fareham, Suella Braverman, visited Warsash Sailing Club on 1 July, to discuss safety initiatives with the Royal Yachting Association (RYA).

RYA representatives showed Braverman the RYA SafeTrx app, the handy vessel tracking app which alerts emergency contacts should the user not arrive at their destination on time. The representatives showed how the app can also work as a practical tool, providing the knowledge to be safer at sea with weather information, port and marina contacts and VHF details based on the vessel’s location.

After the visit, Braverman said: “I have had a wonderful afternoon meeting with the RYA and Warsash Sailing Club members, vibrant sports clubs such as this are vital hubs in our communities. It is important that people get trained and follow safety best practices whilst enjoying being on the water, joining a club or undertaking a training course is a great way to get started. Having the chance to get afloat myself today was a fantastic experience.”  

During the visit, Braverman joined Ian Walker MBE, RYA director of racing, and Rachel Andrews, RYA chief instructor for power, for a taster session out on the water in an RS dinghy.

Walker added: “We have welcomed the opportunity to meet with Suella Braverman MP today to discuss some of the key safety initiatives, such as the RYA SafeTrx app, that the RYA is doing to actively support safe and fun recreational activity on the water.

“Going afloat is a great way to learn new skills, grow in confidence and to meet new friends. However, as more people head to the coast and the inland waterways this summer, it is also vital that we continue to highlight the benefits of following good safety practices whilst afloat.”

Meanwhile, chief inspector of marine accidents for the Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB), Andrew Moll OBE, says that he will spend Maritime Safety Week focusing on fishing vessel safety. Moll reports that ‘in 2021, ten commercial fishermen lost their lives’ and that nine out of the 22 MAIB investigations last year ‘involved commercial fishing vessels’.

Moll (pictured left) says the organisation will focus on understanding the cause of these accidents and improving safety going forward.

“Stability on board fishing vessels is a significant ongoing safety issue,” says Moll. “The recent reports looking into the tragic accidents on board the potting vessels Nicola Faith and Joanna C have highlighted how modifications can compromise a vessel’s stability.

“However, stability can also be compromised during fishing operations by, for example, overloading, which was the case in the accident involving Nicola Faith.”

As reported in MIN, Nicola Faith capsized and sank due to its modifications. Moll says the main trigger was “severe overloading by a combination of catch and fishing gear”. Sadly, all three crew members died as a result of the incident.

“How much have modifications eroded our vessel’s stability since it was built? Do we have a safe procedure for when the fishing gear becomes snagged or picks up a heavy load? Are we using the fish hold to best effect to minimise the weight on deck? I would urge crews to take a look at the Nicola Faith and Joanna C reports and heed the lessons the investigations identified.”