Executive summary
On 22 April 2009, the Korean-registered fishing vessel Pantas No.1, while chartered to a New Zealand-registered fishing company and fully compliant with a New Zealand safe ship management system was discharging its cargo of frozen squid at the New Zealand port of Bluff.
The boatswain (bosun), who was directing hatch operations from inside a rigged safety line at number 3 fish hold, was catapulted forward by the safety rope and fell down the hold when a load that was being hoisted caught on the safety rope, pulling it taught and displacing one of the securing points to which it was attached. The bosun later died from his injuries.
Four unsafe working practices were identified on board the vessel, of which 3 contributed to the accident.
A safety recommendation has been made to the Director of Maritime New Zealand to address the issue of a poor safety culture that existed on board the Pantas No.1 and to assess whether the poor safety culture might also extend to the ship operator and owner.
Related Recommendations
A culture of poor adherence to safety standards existed on board the Pantas No.1, which possibly extends up through the operator and owner given the design deficiencies for fencing off openings, and the examples of unsafe behaviour exhibited by more than one member of the crew, indicating that this operator might require close regulatory supervision.