Investigate two marine incidents and assess reporting obligations

What is going on

Two events are open in the Marine Incident and Hazard Register. On 8 September Barge BW1 made contact with a wharf fender while Bluewater Kestrel was pushing it alongside in a gust, with minor scuffing. On 15 September a cradle chock shifted while Bluewater Shearwater was being blocked on the Eden slipway and the vessel settled 50 millimetres, with no one under the hull at the time. Both were reported on Marine Incident Report Forms and the deck and slipway logs are available. Ben Olorunfemi wants both investigated properly, a decision on whether either is reportable to the regulator, underlying causes identified, corrective actions assigned, and a compliance summary prepared for the General Manager's management review.

Your brief

Investigate both incidents from the report forms, logs and interviews, decide whether either is reportable under the marine incident reporting requirements, identify the immediate and underlying causes, record corrective actions with owners and dates in the Marine Incident and Hazard Register, and write a compliance summary for the management review.

Work through it

You do not need to do it all. Doing a few of these will show you what the work is like. Your ticks and notes stay on this device.

• Read the Safety Management System Policy, the Marine Incident Report Form instructions and the two incident records, and list the information you still need.
• Review the Kestrel deck log, the tow plan and the weather observations for 8 September and interview the master to establish the sequence of events and the wind at the time.
• Review the slipway blocking record and interview the boatyard team about the chock placement, the cradle condition and the procedure used on 15 September.
• Decide for each incident whether it is a reportable marine incident, giving your reasons against the definitions in the reporting requirements, and record the decision in the register.
• Identify the immediate cause and at least two underlying causes for each incident, considering procedure, equipment, training, supervision and environment.
• Draft corrective actions for each incident with an owner and due date, including any change to the tow plan wind limit and the slipway blocking procedure, and record them in the register.
• Check the Fleet and Vessel Register and the Vessel Certificates and Survey Register for any survey implication of the barge contact or the settled vessel and note what the surveyor must be told.
• Write a two-page compliance summary for the management review covering both investigations, the reporting decisions, open actions and the trend in near misses this quarter.

What someone in this role would produce

• Two investigation reports with causes and evidence
• Reporting decision with reasons for each incident
• Updated register entries with corrective actions, owners and dates
• Compliance summary for the management review