Dry CargoOperations
Ladder rigged upside down led to seafarer’s death
A man who fell overboard from the bulk carrier Hyundai Dangjin and drowned off the West Australian coast was using a ladder that was rigged upside down, an investigation by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau has revealed.
The second mate drowned in bad weather off Cape Lambert last year.
An Australian Transport Safety Bureau investigation found the ladder, that the second mate used to climb down the side of the ship to check the draught, did not provide a flat surface to stand on because it was upside down.
The ship’s charterer, Rio Tinto, has since banned rope ladders from being used to undertake readings.