News / Tragic loss of skipper could have been avoided
THE LOSS of Shetland fisherman Neil Smith who drowned when he was dragged overboard his creel boat Breadwinner in January this year has been “entirely avoidable” according to the Marine Accident Investigation Branch.
In an accident report out today (Thursday), the MAIB makes a number of recommendations on how fishermen working on their own could be encouraged to change their working practices to be better protected.
Mr Smith died on 20 January around 5.5 miles east of Bressay when he was thrown overboard after becoming entangled in a bight of back rope while shooting creels.
He was not wearing a personal flotation device (PFD) or carrying a personal locator beacon (PLB) at the time.
Investigators believe that against his usual practice Mr Smith had left the safety of his wheelhouse while shooting 70 prawn creels, and had entered the deck despite being fully aware of the dangers.
It is believed that Mr Smith had no knife readily available to cut himself free.
The vessel of the 54 year old fishermen was found the following day by the crew of the Shetland Coastguard search and rescue helicopter on Grif Skerry, near Whalsay.
Following an extensive and methodical search, Mr Smith was eventually found eight days later still entangled in the back rope, around 2.25 miles east south east of where he initially had been expected.
Mr Smith had been a fisherman all his life and was highly respected within the fishing community.
The weather and the sea state at the time of accident meant that Breadwinner was close to her operating limit. Winds were force five to six.
The MAIB report said: “The accident happened during a normal shooting operation, which the skipper had carried out routinely for many years. The creels were laid using a “self-shooting” system, which obviated the need for anyone to be on deck during the entire shooting process.
“However, there were no control measures on Breadwinner to separate crew members from the fishing gear during shooting operations if it became necessary for someone to leave the protection afforded by the wheelhouse.”
The MAIB said there had been a series of serious accidents during the winter months of 2010/11 which had brought into sharp focus the risks involved in single-handed fishing operations.
“These accidents, five in total, resulted in three fatalities, one near fatality, and the loss of a vessel following a collision.
“All these accidents were entirely avoidable, the common themes being poorly considered working practices and inadequate equipment design,” chief inspector of marine accidents, Steve Clinch said.
The MAIB concluded that:
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wearing a PFD would have increased the skippers’ survival time in the water;
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had the skipper carried PLBs, the alarm would have been raised and the rescue effort would have started much earlier, thus increasing the chances of survival;
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Breadwinner was operated by a lone fisherman without a remote engine cut-out device.
They also noted that:
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there is a need to provide single-handed fishermen with credible, effective advice on safe working practices;
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safety might have been improved had the casualty re-evaluated his working practices;
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none of the available operational safety guidance or advisory notes offered guidance for single-handed operations.
The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) recommended that the current guidance is extended and published in the Fishermen’s Safety Guide to cover the additional safety considerations needed for single-handed operations
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