Incidents continue due to pedestal crane slewing gear's failure because of bearing wear, often leading to damage to equipment, cargo, significant repair delays and in events of catastrophic bearing failures, severe injury and fatalities. In many cases, the bearings fail with hook loads well below the crane's safe working load.

The UK Hydrographic Office (UKHO) has reissued a warning for the
industry to be aware of the dangers of counterfeit versions of ADMIRALTY charts and publications, after observing an increase in the number of counterfeit products in circulation.

These counterfeit items pose a significant danger to crew, vessels and cargo, as they have not been assessed by UKHO experts nor supplied by an authorized ADMIRALTY Chart Agent, who both perform vital quality assurance to ensure the integrity of information in genuine products.

Following the loss of the Supramax bulk carrier BULK JUPITER in January 2015, with the tragic loss of 18 lives, the IMO Sub-Committee on the Carriage of Cargoes and Containers (CCC), at its second session in September 2015 noted that the loss of the ship may have been caused by liquefaction of the cargo. Circular CCC.1/Circ.2 "Carriage of Bauxite which may Liquefy" was issued at that time to raise awareness to the potential risks posed by moisture in the carriage of Bauxite. Although Bauxite is described in the IMSBC Code as a Group C cargo, the potential for this cargo to liquefy was not specifically addressed in the Code.

This Safety Alert is issued by The Bahamas Maritime Authority (BMA) to bring the results of the International Maritime Pilot Association (IMPA) Safety Campaign 2020 to the attention of seafarers, pilots, owners, managers and Classification Societies.

Summary of the safety flashes for 2020 and those relevant for 2021 including unsecured material falling against crewman causing injury, something often seen on vessels where inadequate lashings had been fitted. I am sure many of you will have seen a similar arrangement.