A new mandatory requirement introduced by the IMO for anchor handling winches under SOLAS Regulation II-1/3-13, as amended by IMO Resolution MSC.532(107), which came into force on 1 January 2026.
As explained, these amendments follow previous updates covering lifting appliances, and are supported by the IMO Guidelines for Anchor Handling Winches (MSC.1/Circ.1662). The new requirements apply specifically to anchor handling winches, defined as “winches used for the purpose of deploying, recovering and repositioning anchors and mooring lines in subsea operations.”
Such winches are commonly found on dedicated anchor handling vessels, offshore support ships, and certain tugboats, and may be either purpose-built for anchor handling or integrated into a towing winch system.
It is important to note that these requirements do not apply to anchor windlasses, which are used to handle a ship’s own anchors.
Requirements for new anchor handling winches (installed on or after 1 January 2026)
Below you will find a weekly report dated 21 January 2026, covering the period of 15 to 21 January 2026, where the following incidents were reported:
Full advisory at the following link.
https://britanniapandi.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/ARC-Weekly-Report-21.01.26.pdf
A safety alert drawing attention to an incident where a daughter craft was grounded after transiting through a known navigational hazard.
What happened
Whilst sitting outside of Port a Daughter Craft (DC) Crew were tasked to enter Port to collect a marine assessor and a number of mannequins to facilitate the conducting of validation trials later that morning, prior to the mother vessel entering Port for the scheduled crew change.
Whilst the DC was in transit it travelled outside the recognised navigational channel, from this, it is suspected that the DC passed over a known navigational hazard outside of the recognised Port navigational channel. This area is clearly identified on the Port Navigational Chart as a drying area (a region of the seabed that is covered by water at high tide but exposed at low tide) with an identification and navigational warning light.
A major fire broke out among containers at the Karachi International Container Terminal (KICT) in Pakistan, on 16 January.
Despite a prompt response from firefighting teams, at least 20 containers were completely destroyed, though fortunately no injuries or casualties have been reported.
The blaze reportedly began around 1:45 p.m. local time near Gate 20, close to the West Wharf. While the exact cause remains under investigation, preliminary reports indicate the fire started in a single container and quickly spread to adjacent units.