Volume 12: Number 3: September 2005
Fangcheng, PRC - water depth uncertainty
The Association has recently become aware of three incidents of ships grounding at the Port of Fangcheng in the PRC.
Two of the groundings were a short distance off piers11 and 12 respectively. At least one of those incidents appears to have occurred as a result of the depths of water encountered being different to those shown on the B.A. charts and local charts, and not in accordance with published tidal data. Further, strong currents at the berth appear to have caused the parting of all the mooring ropes of one ship causing her to drift off the berth; strong currents appear to be a factor in the second ship doing the same. Comprehensive investigations into potential differences between encountered water depths and published data have not been possible at this stage and therefore detailed guidance to Members and Masters of ships scheduled to call at the port is not possible. However, we believe that Members and ship’s Masters should, prior to loading, obtain as much information as possible fromagents regarding depths at the port and the berth and consider utilising extra mooring lines.
Time charterer’s routing instructions
Masters might recall reports of the ‘Hill Harmony’ case in which the English courts decided that the decision by a Master to take a different route from that recommended by the charterer’s weather routing contractors was a breach of the charter and that the Master was obliged to comply with the weather routing instructions. A recent arbitration decision illustrates well the distinction between that obligation and the Master’s authority to override instructions on the grounds of the safety of the ship, crew or cargo. In the subject case, the ship was encountering very heavy seas (Beaufort Force 11) during the initial part of a northerly transit of the Pacific. On the basis that the ship was suffering physical damage as a result of seas shipped on deck, the Master ignored weather routing instructions and took a more southerly route for the remainder of the voyage. Arbitrators had sympathy with the Master in this regard and found that as his decision related to the safety of the ship he was not obliged to follow the routing instructions to continue on the more northerly route. However, the Master’s insistence on maintaining the southerly route whilst receiving repeated and consistent advice from the weather routing facility that the weather had abated on the more northerly route and that the weather would remain good for the remainder of the passage was a breach of the charter and was not justified under grounds of safety. The Master was obliged to follow the routing instructions to return to the more northerly route.
Diseases of the blood
We continue our occasional series of articles on health related matters by looking at the function of the blood and some of the diseases that can be carried in the blood.
Blood serves the vital purpose of carrying oxygen and nutrients to the organs in the body and removing carbon dioxide and waste matter for excretion. It also carries hormones. Blood consists of red cells or corpuscles, which contain haemoglobin that absorbs oxygen in the lungs and releases it to the tissue. The second component of blood is the white cells that fight infection, assist in wound healing and rejection of foreign bodies. The third main component is platelets that play an important role in blood clotting. The platelets and the white and red cells are transported around the circulatory system in plasma, a straw coloured liquid, which comprises 55 percent of blood.
There are several medical conditions which affect the blood itself.The most serious of these are anaemia, leukaemia, lymphoma and thrombosis.
Anaemia is characterized by inadequate red blood cells and/or haemoglobin in the blood. There are several different types of anaemia and the space available here does not permit a detailed description of the various types. Anaemia can be caused by loss of blood through injury, or illnesses which cause blood loss and inadequate intake of iron. Symptoms canvary, but anaemia is usually associated with tiredness, weakness and giddiness and can be treated by giving sufficient iron by mouth. Of course, in those cases where the anaemia is caused by blood loss, the cause of the loss must first be identified and treated. A blood transfusion may then be necessary.
Leukaemia and lymphoma are both forms of cancer and in view of the complex nature of both conditions it is not intended to discuss them in this article.
Thrombosis is the formation of a blood clot within the blood vessels or heart, causing damage, such as heart disease and strokes. The indirect causes of thrombosis are damage to the lining of the blood vessels, causing a build up of fatty deposits on the vessel walls and eventually leading to a total blockage. The avoidance of an excessively fatty diet, smoking and excessive alcohol intake can all reduce the risk of thrombosis.
Hepatitis is an inflammation of the liver which damages the liver cells and may kill. There are several types of hepatitis. One of the most common forms is caused by excessive alcohol consumption, leading to cirrhosis which permanently damages the liver tissue. There are also five types of viral hepatitis, described respectively as Hepatitis A, B, C, D, and E. The two main types are A and B. Hepatitis A is spread by faecal contamination and commonly occurs in conditions of overcrowding and poor sanitation. Hepatitis B is spread in infected blood, often sexually transmitted(both heterosexual and homosexual sexual intercourse),by transfusion of infected blood, or theuse of contaminated hypodermic needles. It can also be transmitted by tattooing and acupuncture. There are vaccines to prevent infection by Hepatitis A and B.
Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) is the clinical manifestation of infection by Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). HIV attacks the immune system so that the infected person becomes susceptible to infection by such conditions astuberculosis, pneumonia and meningitis. AIDS is transmitted in the same way as Hepatitis B.As yet there is no vaccine to prevent HIV infection.
New bunkering requirements (Marpol Annex VI) - Port State Control Inspection Guidelines
In the last edition of Risk Watch (Vol. 12: No. 2: June 2005) obligations of ship Masters and bunker suppliers arising from the entry into force on 19 May 2005 of Annex VI of Marpol 73/78 - Regulations for the prevention of air pollution from ships - were elaborated.
The question arises as to how a Master can comply with the new requirements if the ship takes bunkers in a port (country) which is not party to Marpol Annex VI. In this situation a bunker supplier is not required to provide a Bunker Delivery Note (BDN) or fuel sample in the manner specified in Annex VI. The ship could then fall foul of Port State Control inspectors at subsequent ports (countries) which are signatories to Marpol Annex VI.
Following industry representations the Marine Environmental Protection Committee (MEPC)amended the draft guidelines to take account of the practical problems arising from bunkering in states not party to Marpol Annex VI.
Guidelines for Port State Control under Marpol Annex VI, was published as a circular (MEPC/Circ.472) on 29July 2005.The resolution states in part that; ‘In the case where the bunker delivery note or the representative sample as required by regulation 18 of this Annex presented to the ship are not in compliance with the relevant requirements, the master or officer in charge ofthe bunker operation should have documented that through a Notification to the ship’s Flag Administration with copies to the port authority under whose jurisdiction the ship did not receive the required documentation pursuant to the bunkering operation and to the bunker deliverer. A copy should be retained onboard the ship, together with any available commercial documentation, for the subsequent scrutiny of port State control.’
It is suggested that relevant ‘commercial documentation’ should include test results for the bunkers delivered from a bona fide testing laboratory contracted by the ship owner.
Fluorspar loaded in Chinese ports
Contacts in Hong Kong have recently advised of three incidents of ships losing stability whilst carrying cargoes of fluorspar from China.
It appears that shippers are providing only cargo moisture content details and that no information is being provided by shippers regarding the flow properties of the cargo. It is recommended that any owners/charterers intending to fix fluorspar from Hong Kong or other Chinese ports practice extreme caution and fully familiarise themselves with the relevant sections of the Bulk Code before agreeing to load/carry this commodity.
Damage to covered terminal
The Association has recently had several reported incidents of ship’s masts coming into contact with the canopies of covered (all-weather) terminals.
These terminals are used for continuous operation where the nature of the product being loaded or discharged is particularly sensitive to adverse weather. The incidents in which Members of the Association have been involved concerned wood pulp shipments. Such terminals are also built to facilitate the handling of steel products.
As can be appreciated from the photograph, air draft restrictions apply to some of these terminals. However, this information does not seem to be routinely communicated to Masters. The subject incidents occurred in Northern European ports.
Masters are recommended to request detailed information, particularly relating to air draft restrictions, when ordered to call at terminals they know, or suspect, are all-weather facilities.
Import and use of drugs in the UAE
Masters are advised that the UAE’s attitude toward the import of drugs is considerably more conservative than might be expected.
So much so that crew members who take pain killers which are readily available as a matter of routine in shops, for example in the USA, may find themselves at risk of being arrested in the UAE for failing to declare ‘banned and controlled medicines’. Such common place drugs as Codeine and Valium fall within this category and will require specific declaration and perhaps to be accompanied by a doctor’s prescription. Masters should seek specific guidance from their agents well in advance of arrival at UAE ports.
(176 Kb)