AN IN-DEPTH report into a fatal lifeboat accident has revealed a catalogue of errors and failings, highlighting fundamental problems with lifeboat safety.

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau’s 44-page report into the 2004 Lowlands Grace incident, in which two people died and four were seriously injured during a safety drill, says the accident was preventable.

The report says the incident was caused by long-term, severe corrosion on part of the boat release system that should have been spotted during routine maintenance and inspections by the crew and the class society.

Unfortunately it was not an isolated incident and ironically, these drills are intended to improve safety standards.

Twelve seafarers were killed and 87 injured during safety drills in 1991-2001 according to the UK’s Maritime Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB).

Six**** per cent of all accidental deaths of seafarers are caused by such incidents, said a senior executive from a P&I Club, quoting an MAIB report. “As a claims handler I’ve seen more deaths from drills than from the launch of lifeboats in real emergencies,” said the executive, who did not wish to be named. “The two incidents I recently dealt with caused ten injuries and three were very serious.”

Part of the problem is maintenance. “The Lowlands Grace incident is typical of a number of incidents where maintenance is an issue,” explained Phil Anderson, an ISM and safety consultant. He says it is a long-term worry and the MAIB had already highlighted these problems three or four years ago. Since then, at least six people have died in lifeboat-related incidents around the world.

These lifeboat accidents are also a liability headache. “It can be an expensive business for owners and managers as it would undoubtedly result in a minimum of bad publicity, lost days at sea and in more serious cases, compensation and other costs which can run into hundreds of thousands of pounds, especially if lives are lost,” said one safety expert with 15 years of experience.

The catalogue of accidents over the past 15 years suggests little has been done, but now the IMO is issuing new guidelines – SOLAS amendments called MSC 1093, due out on 1 July.

But industry experts feel the new guidelines could create more problems that they solve, since they say servicing and repair should be done by the manufacturer or someone licensed by the manufacturer.

Safety experts described this as a ‘blank cheque’ for manufacturers and the lack of competition in the sector could push up prices as well as raising concerns about a shortage of qualified personnel.