As a crew member was passing through a self-closing fire door into the engine control room, his left foot was caught between the closing door and the door frame. The Nautical Institute describes the incident and the lessons learned from it in a new Mars Report.
The Nautical Institute gathers reports of maritime accidents and near-misses. It then publishes these so-called Mars (Mariners’ Alerting and Reporting Scheme) Reports (anonymously) to prevent other accidents from happening. This is one of these reports.
The crew member’s forward momentum caused him to lurch forward, but his foot was caught and he lost his left shoe. The fire door continued to close and badly pinched his now exposed big toe. He was unfit for work for over a week.
Although the company investigation did not judge the door’s closing “latch speed” to be a factor, they nonetheless found that periodical verification of self-closing devices for all fleet vessels was a worthwhile addition to the vessel’s planned maintenance system (PMS).
Also read: Crew member’s fingers crushed during maintenance
Advice from The Nautical Institute
- In machinery spaces and work environments, well secured protective boots are always recommended.
- Self-closing door mechanisms are adjustable and should be checked from time to time. Door closing speed should be just sufficient to ensure proper closure. Too quick can be a hazard and too slow could mean the door does not have enough energy to catch closed.
Also read: SOV gangway crushes crew member’s foot
Mars Reports
This accident was covered in the Mars Reports, originally published as Mars 202610. A selection of the Mars Reports are also published in the SWZ|Maritime magazine. The Nautical Institute compiles these reports to help prevent maritime accidents. That is why they are also published (in full) on SWZ|Maritime’s website.
More reports are needed to keep the scheme interesting and informative. All reports are read only by the Mars coordinator and are treated in the strictest confidence. To submit a report, please use the Mars report form.
Picture by The Nautical Institute.
