[ad_1]
Martitime New Zealand
The poorly repaired handrail broke when the port worker went to take a break and collapsed twenty feet onto the concrete pier below.
One of New Zealand’s largest stevedoring companies agreed to spend more than $ 425,000 on training and safety improvements after a dock worker was seriously injured in a fall from a logging ship docked in Tauranga.
The 28-year-old victim slipped and fell after a safety railing she trusted broke. It plummeted eight meters from the logs stacked on the ship to the concrete pier below.
The impact destroyed the bones of his legs and arms and he also suffered internal injuries that led him to be hospitalized for 56 days, having to undergo numerous surgeries.
The accident, in December 2017, has had lasting repercussions for both the Mount Maunganui-based stevedoring company ISO Limited and the shipping company China Navigation Company Ltd, which owns the log hauler. Pakhoi.
READ MORE:
* The ship collided with Mount Maunganui while the skipper and the sailor slept
* Crew members fined for beaching the ship in Tauranga
* Auckland Harbor – Another Serious Incident Revealed, Night Shift Culture Criticized
In July, a judge at the Tauranga District Court fined China Navigation $ 24,000 and ordered the company to pay the victim $ 30,000 after pleading guilty to a charge under the Maritime Transportation Law for “dangerous activity involving ships and marine products “.
Now Maritime NZ, which brought the indictment against both companies, accepted what is known as an “enforceable compromise” from ISO that will cost $ 425,000, as well as further financial amends for the victim.
The compromise, a first for the maritime industry, is a legally enforceable agreement that is an alternative to prosecution.
According to Maritime NZ Midwest Compliance Manager Michael-Paul Abbott, “it was not an easy option.”
Maritime New Zealand
The railing had been damaged by dock workers in India months before the accident, and poor repair work meant it was still a hazard.
“We took into account the significant commitment made by ISO to raising health and safety standards in the industry and the fact that the company was committed to providing ongoing support to the injured worker and their family.”
ISO consulted with the Amalgamated Longshoremen’s Union, the injured man and his family, the Port Industry Association, the Port of Tauranga and the ship charterers when drafting the pledge.
“By working openly with all of these groups and what they have offered … ISO has shown a serious commitment to improving safety,” said Abbott.
“The money you are committing to spend is an investment in security that will help stevedores in ports across the country.”
Christel Yardley / Stuff
The dock worker fell from stacked logs onto the deck of the logging ship and fell eight meters onto a concrete pier in the port of Tauranga (file photo).
As part of the agreement, ISO will develop and deliver a national training program for management personnel on working at heights in stevedoring operations.
This will include risk management, provision and maintenance of security equipment; training for the 400 ISO stevedoring employees; and ensure that the injured worker participates in the development and delivery of the training.
The company will also research and develop solutions for accessing and egressing cargo on deck and alternative lowering methods in emergency situations.
The firm will also make “appropriate” donations to the Philips Search and Rescue Trust and the preschool that the injured’s children attend.
The handrail that failed, causing the fall, had been damaged by longshoremen when the Pakhoi it was docked in India in July 2017. It had come loose and was re-welded to the ship.
However, the repair work was substandard and did not meet the requirements of any approved structural steel standard. As a result, the handrail and the ladder below it were not safe to use.
the Pakhoi arrived in Tauranga to load logs on December 18, 2017. Neither the master of the Pakhoi nor did any member of the ship’s crew transmit any information about the handrail and ladder repairs to ISO before or during loading.
At approximately 7:20 p.m. the following day, the stevedore began to disembark from Pakhoi for a scheduled break. He grabbed onto the handrail, which immediately came completely loose at its base where he had been a soldier, and fell.
The worker was saved from a serious head injury when his helmet and backpack were pulled up under his head when he fell. However, the injuries he sustained will affect him for the rest of his life.
At the time of the ruling against China Navigation in July, Abbott praised the court’s decision.
“Poor maintenance and poor communication caused an incident that nearly killed this man,” he said.
