On December 26 a Singapore-flagged tanker, PEARL KENZO, collided with a Chinese-flagged fishing vessel, SUIYUPU 0183, near Chengshan Jiao, China.
According to the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA), the tanker was on its way from Penglai, China, to Zhoushan when the event occurred. The China Maritime Safety Administration notified MPA that the fishing vessel had sunk and that eight of the crew members were missing.
Chinese authorities have conducted search and rescue operations. Luckily, all of the tanker’s crew members are safe.
Furthermore, there was no pollution in the vicinity. The PEARL KENZO is presently anchored at Shidao Anchorage, supporting Chinese investigators.
Lessons learned from previous casualties
- Passage planning – probable traffic conditions should be risk assessed and critical areas identified as part of the appraisal. Effective control measures could include adjusting the passage to avoid high traffic areas, planning work to make senior watchkeepers available on the bridge for the transit of high-risk areas or strategic use of the time available to reduce speed on high-risk legs.
- Bridge resources – watchkeepers should be aware of the function of all available tools to assess risk of collision and support decision making.
- Navigating in dense traffic – if documented procedures such as reducing speed or maintaining minimum CPA are not applied consistently, perceived risk can reduce resulting in greater risk taking.
- Action to avoid collision – needs to be early, substantial and easily seen by another vessel. Use of the appropriate sound signal helps clarify the action being taken and visually monitoring the effectiveness of action taken is vital.
- Near miss or collision? – if there is any indication that a collision has occurred, it is essential to find out conclusively and render assistance as required.