#MCIB - Wearing a personal flotation device could have helped save the life of a fisherman whose body was found at the Saltee Islands off Co Wexford this summer months after his disappearance, according to marine accident investigators.

As RTÉ News reports, the body of Paddy Barry, 56, was discovered on the shore of Great Saltee Island on 4 May more than five months after his fishing vessel, the MFV Leonora Jacinta, was found south of the island with no one aboard on 25 November 2013.

The official report into the incident by the Marine Casualty Investigation Board (MCIB) established that Barry, a part-time fishermen who could not swim, had set out from Kilmore Quay alone on the morning of his disappearance to lift and bait lobster pots, and retrieve a string of fouled pots close to Shoal Rock.

It was at the latter location where his boat was last seen headed at 11am, but around 11.50am a passing fishing vessel noted that Barry's boat had been stationary in that spot for some time.

Another vessel approached some 30 minutes later and found that the Leonora Jacinta was secured to a line of pots with its engine idling and its pot hauler set in neutral.

Lifeboat and coastguard teams were contacted immediately and began what became a 26-day search by land, sea and air around the area where the Leonora Jacinta was found, but the operation was stood down on 22 December due to deteriorating weather conditions.

According to the MCIB report, witnesses familiar with Barry confirmed that two personal floatation devices (PFDs) found on the Leonora Jacinta were the vessel's only PFDs – and indicated that Barry preferred not to wear one when he was working, against the Code of Practice for Fishing Vessels.

It was also found that the boat's gunwale was only half a metre high at the pot hauler, giving little stability in that deck position. Though not against regulations, it suggests that Barry could have been pitched overboard by the vessel lurching in even a slight swell.

In such an event, strong currents in the area could have carried Barry some two miles northeast of the boat within two hours, and lacking a lifejacket it would have been extremely difficult both for him to stay afloat and for rescuers to spot him.

Had he been wearing a PDF "it is likely that he would have remained on the surface and been visible to the search teams, which could have led to an early recovery," says the report – which also recommends amending the Code of Practice to set a minimum height for bulwarks, guard rails and hand rails.

The full MCIB report on the MFV Leonora Jacinta incident is available to download below.

#MCIB - Poor adherence to various safety regulations made worse the situation in which a fisherman died of severe head injury off Cork in February last year, according to an official report into the incident.

As previously reported on Afloat.ie, the man was one of three crew on the fishing trawler FV Liberty that was hauling cod off the Old Head of Kinsale when the tragedy occurred on the evening of Thursday 14 February 2013.

The Marine Casualty Investigation Board's (MCIB) report into the incident details the sequence of events that led to the fatality, which was caused by the failure of split links in the vessel's hauling gear as a cod trawl net was being hoisted, striking the casualty on the head.

It was determined by the MCIB that the ropes and links used on the vessel were prone to jamming and the boat's head blocks were in poor condition - and that the incident may have been avoided if these were properly examined and maintained.

It was also found that none of the three crew had undergone basic safety training, and that none was wearing protective headgear on deck.

While the skipper was an experienced fisherman, he was new to this particular vessel. The casualty, too, had only joined the vessel that day, while the third crew member tasked with operating the lifting gear "would not be considered sufficiently experienced to conduct such a task".

Moreover, the vessel's radio equipment was found to be in poor condition, making communication with emergency services challenging.

Above all, the MCIB states that the vessel "did not comply with the requirements of the Fishing Vessel Code of Practice. 

"The deficiencies in place on-board FV Liberty during the MCIB investigation showed that risk assessment was not completed, annual inspection was not carried out for lifting equipment, and personnel had not completed the required training."

The full MCIB report into the FV Liberty incident is available to download below.

#MCIB - Excessive speed and poor visibility were the biggest contributing factors in a RIB crash incident on Lough Ree two years ago, according to accident investigators.

One passenger sustained head injuries when the RIB, with a helmsman and three passengers on board, collided with the centre support polars of the Athlone Railway Bridge, close to the Westmeath town's marina, on the evening of 14 July 2012.

Though the injured passenger required a transfer to Beaumont Hospital in Dublin after losing consciousness, all four people on the RIB were later released from hospital.

The RIB itself, however, was damaged beyond repair, says the Marine Casualty Investigation Board (MCIB) report into the incident, which also detailed that the nature of the damage caused was consistent with a RIB accelerating at a speed greater than 15 knots.

This was in spite of speed limits of the Shannon Navigation set at no more than 5kmph within 200m of any bridge, quay, jetty or wharf, when in a harbour area or within 100 of any moored vessel.

It was also determined that was the collision occurred around sunset, "it is likely that the light conditions would not have been good".

The full MCIB report into the Lough Ree incident is available to download below.

#MCIB - A poorly positioned lobster pot hauler and failure to maintain a working PFD have been identified among the main contributing factors in the death of a retired schoolteacher and recreational fisherman off West Cork two years ago.

That's according to the Marine Casualty Investigation Board's (MCIB) report on the incident off the Beara Peninsula on 17 August 2012, in which 66-year-old Pearse Lyne drowned after his fishing boat capsized.

As previously reported on Afloat.ie, Lyne's death was the second tragedy to befall the Castletownbere area in mid August 2012, occurring just days after farmer and poet John O'Leary drowned off Cod's Head.

The MCIB report established that Lyne had set out to sea on the morning of 17 August 2012 in a hurry to retrieve his lobster pots as that year's fishing season closed out.

Though Met Éireann's reports on the day's weather conditions were favourable, anecdotal evidence from local mariners at the time suggest a heavy swell in the area.

Investigators also found that Lyne's unregistered boat, while in sound working order, had its lobster pot hauler fitted on the starboard stern quarter, not in the usual forward position, which may have made affected the boat's stability – although it is unclear exactly what caused the capsize.

In addition, Lyne was found not to be wearing a lifejacket or PFD when his body was removed from the water, though there is evidence he was attempting to access one from the forward locker when he was overcome by the situation.

But even if he had, the PFD found on board his vessel was determined to be defective, with its gas cartridge already expended.

The report recommends that a Marine Notice be issued recommending all mariners inspect their PFDs for defects such as expired or expended gas inflation cylinders.

The complete MCIB report can be downloaded as a PDF below.

#Astrid - Engine failure led to the grounding of the tall ship Astrid off the Cork coast a year ago, according to an interim report by marine investigators.

The 42m Dutch brig's 30-strong crew, most of them sail trainees, were rescued in a major operation after it ran onto rocks between Oysterhaven and Kinsale in choppy seas during last summer's ISA-organised Gathering Cruise.

Built in 1918 and in service as a cargo vessel till 1975, the tall ship foundered in the same spot where the barque Falls of Garry sank in 1911.

The Irish Times reports on the Marine Casualty Investigation Board's (MCIB) findings ahead of its final report to come after "the natural justice procedure".

Dutch authorities are involved in the Irish-led investigation that began in the days after the Astrid accident. There is as yet no indication as to what caused the vessel's engine to fail.

#MCIB - 'Safety first' is the message from marine investigators in their report into an incident on board a sightseeing vessel off the Skellig Islands two years ago.

The Flying Horse, a 33-foot passenger boat crewed by a single skipper, was carrying 14 passengers towards Skellig Michael on the morning of 29 June 2012 when it began taking on water after coming off a large wave.

The skipper then turned the boat around and attempted to contact the owner by mobile phone, without making any use of the vessel's VHF radio.

The passengers also have difficulty accessing the boat's lifejackets from their storage compartments, and there were not enough for all on board.

All were landed safety ashore at Ballinskelligs, Co Kerry, though they were "somewhat traumatised" by the experience.

The official report into the incident my the Marine Casualty Investigation Board (MCIB) identified a number of safety issues with the Flying Horse, not least a lack of proper instruction for donning lifejackets.

MCIB investigators identified the boat's speed before the incident to be around 18 knots, too fast for the rough seas at the time, which contributed to the hull damage that saw the boat take on water.

Moreover, no official records could be found to show that the skipper held the necessary qualifications to be the master of boat in question. or that he was in possession of a Radio Operator’s Certificate - a requirement for all passenger vessels.

The boat was also found to be technically overloaded, carrying two more passengers than allowed by its licence - not to mention "insufficient" crew for her safe operation.

The full report is available to download below.

#ShipsRudder - As previously reported on Afloat.ie, containership Arslan II (1991/3,125grt) that grounded on Arklow Bank in January, and understood to have damaged her rudder, arrived off Turkey in recent days, writes Jehan Ashmore.

Following the incident off Co. Wicklow, the 260 TEU container capacity vessel had been towed to Dublin Port to seek refuge and repairs following a port state authorities control inspection.

The vessel was dry-docked for a month at the Dublin Dry Docks facility within Alexandra Basin from where further steel works were required.

In total the 89m vessel remained in Dublin Port for more than two months between initial berthing and dry-docking until finally she departed on a 14-day voyage to Turkey. Her course in the Mediterranean involved passing coastlines offshore of some North African states as far as Tunisia.

She continued sailing south of Sciliy and eventually arrived off Aliaga, where she was at anchorage off the major shipbreaking centre which lies outside the western Turkish port.

The ships owners are understood to be awaiting further instructions as she is to undergo further repairs and as of this morning she is underway again to another ship repair facility.

In the meantime, the grounding incident remains under investigation by the Marine Casualty Investigation Board (MCIB).

Arslan II until her sale last year was previously named Coastal Isle. She was a frequenct caller to Dublin Port and having been featured as file footage regularly for RTE News particularly relating to stories on the balance of trade and Irish exports. A role she played her part in bringing exports and imports for the last three decades and starting off under original name of Johanna.

Her sister, Coastal Deniz (see former Guinness ships) operates a Liverpool - Manchester container shuttle-service and they both previously served a network linking the major Irish Sea ports between Belfast, Dublin,Liverpool and Cardiff.

As Arslan II she is understood to have operated to ports among them Warrenpoint and again returning to the Welsh capital.

#MarineNotice - Marine Notice 14 of 2014 advises that a revised Code of Practice concerning the Design, Construction, Equipment and Operation of Small Fishing Vessels of less than 15 metres length overall (Revision 2 dated 20/01/14 with operative date of 03/03/14) has been published.

The revision incorporates provisions relating to the carriage of automatic, float-free EPIRBs for fishing vessels of under 12 metres and for the wearing of Personal Locator Beacons by all on board a fishing vessel (Chapter 9.5). Training is also required on the use of this equipment (Chapter 8).

These requirements will be included in the scope of the initial survey, survey renewals and at intermediate declaration stage. There are other textual changes reflecting feedback from the industry, surveyors and findings of the Marine Casualty Investigation Board. These include:

• The title of the code has been updated to reflect the inclusion of operational matters;
• Stability criteria remain essentially the same but ‘roll tests’ now need to be carried out both in ‘departure’ and ‘arrive port’ conditions (Chapter 3.2);
• Existing requirements in relation to drills/musters (Chapter 8.9) and the regulation of work/rest time (Chapter 8.10) have been included in the Code;
• Text has been included to remind fishers of their existing obligations to comply with passage planning requirements (Chapter 10.14);
• The Declaration form (Annex 8) has been updated and clarified so as owners and panel surveyors are clear of their obligations under the Code;
• and References to bodies and Marine Notices, etc have been updated.

A copy of the revised Code of Practice is available on the Department’s website HERE. The most recent listing of the approved panel of surveyors and their contact details is also available via the previous link.

#MCIB - The absence of a smoke detection system meant there was no chance for the two-man crew of a Waterford fishing boat to extinguish a fire that engulfed its engine room in an incident off Dunmore East in November 2012.

And marine investigators have urged the Minister for Transport to make such systems a mandatory requirement for all small fishing vessels, according to their official report on the FV Kingfisher.

As previously reported on Afloat.ie, the skipper and crew of the Kingfisher were rescued on the morning of 25 November 2012 after abandoning the vessel to a liferaft.

The Kingfisher had been pair trawling for herring some five miles off Dunmore East with partner vessel FV Mystical Rose when the skipper noticed smoke coming from the exhaust pipe housing on deck.

On opening the engine room hatch, the wheelhouse was quickly engulfed in thick acrid smoke - indicating an oil-based fire - that prevented skipper or crew from making any attempt to put out the fire or even raise the alarm by VHF radio.

Both men on board were retrieved from their liferaft by the Mystical Rose as the Dunmore East lifeboat attempted to extinguish the blaze, with assistance by the Irish Coast Guard helicopter Rescue 117, but to no avail.

In its report, the Marine Casualty Investigation Board (MCIB) determined that the fire was likely too far advanced at the point of discovery to be suppressed by the vessel's sprinkler system or any other means at hand.

The report also noted, importantly, that smoke detection systems are not mandatory for vessels of the Kingfisher's size (less than 15 metres), nor are such boats' bulkheads, deckheads or piping stems required to have any fire-resistant properties.

The MCIB has recommended that the Minister for Transport amend the current Code of Practice for the Design, Construction and Equipment of Small Fishing Vessels of less than 15m Length overall. The full report is available to download below.

#MCIBreport – A report into the 2012 incident of the Irish flagged "MV Huelin Dispatch" has been recently published by the Marine Casualty Investigation Board.

As reported on Afloat.ie, the then brand new containership during its maiden voyage to the Channel Islands struck a rock off Alderney in the English Channel.

To download the report about the Dutch built 2,545grt cargo vessel, click this link from the MCIB website.