Maritime and Coastguard Agency

A man has today (July 22) been fined after pleading guilty to two offences following a joint-investigation carried out by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency’s Regulatory Compliance Investigations Team and Hampshire Constabulary. Sean Gower, 40, of Newlyn Way, Port Solent, who appeared before Newport Magistrates Court on Thursday, was the master of a 6.5 metre-long RIB vessel which was almost directly involved in a collision with a passenger Red Funnel ferry, Red Osprey, in the main fairway of the River Medina on Saturday 12th September last year. Mr Gower was handed a £2,000 fine, with full legal costs awarded to the MCA (£3,953) and an additional surcharge of £190 – making the total amount payable of £6,143.  Mr Gower, along with three companions in his vessel – none of the four people onboard were wearing lifejackets, departed Cowes Yacht Haven, Isle of Wight, and were shown on the Red Osprey’s CCTV to have been over the harbour speed limit of six knots before overtaking and turn...

The Maritime and Coastguard Agency is taking part in an event designed to drive forward training standards for remote operators of autonomous surface ships today.  The webinar, organised by geo-data company Fugro, is being held to engage with industry, academics and non-governmental organisations on how best to establish competencies and training standards. It is part of the pioneering MASSPeople project, which the MCA is a partner in as a world-leader in safe testing and development of autonomous shipping. Robert Gale, from the MCA’s Maritime Future Technologies team said it was an important step in the ongoing work to establish competencies and training standards for remote operators. He said: “It’s important for the UK to continue to drive the new standards and safety regime to shape the future of training for autonomous shipping globally. Copyright: 2019 Studio concept/Shutterstock “We’re taking part in this webinar today to continue our engagement with industry and academia ov...

The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) has collaborated with the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) to build on the existing Safety Climate Tool by making it more applicable to the Maritime industry. The tool is designed to assess the attitudes of individuals within an organisation towards health and safety issues, then deliver an objective measure of the safety culture. It comes as part of the UK Flag’s continued drive towards improved safety awareness, with the MCA supporting a maritime version of HSE's safety climate tool. It has been shown that a poor safety culture is the root cause of many incidents within the workplace, and the remote nature of a lot of seafarer roles means an incident is often serious, even fatal. The tool has been designed by scientists at the HSE, with advice from experts at the MCA and shipping companies, to measure the perceptions of the workforce on health and safety issues. It will offer insight into the safety culture of the organisation to provide ...

This week is Maritime Safety Week and with another bumper season expected on the UK’s beaches, we’re taking this opportunity to remind everyone about the importance of taking responsibility for the safety of yourself and others at the coast. During May-October 2020 the number of people visiting UK beaches soared; Coastguard incidents increased by 18% and 999 calls to the Coastguard increased by 37% (compared to the same period in 2019). August was our busiest month - 999 calls to Coastguards increased by over 50% compared to August 2019. Maritime Minister Robert Courts said: “HM Coastguard plays an invaluable role protecting and saving lives every day. “We owe an enormous amount of thanks to everyone who continues to give their time and efforts to keep our coastline and shores safe. This week is a chance to reflect on the brilliant work done and how we can always work together to save even more lives.” Claire Hughes, director of HM Coastguard, said: “A day at the beach should be filled...

Sixteen people’s lives might have been saved in 2020 if they had been wearing a lifejacket or buoyancy aid, according to findings from the Casualty Review Panel. In 2020, 50 percent of the 32 cases reviewed by the panel concluded that a lifejacket could have saved a life. This figure is slightly higher than the most recent figure of 11 lives (out of 22 fatalities) but is likely to reflect an increased incident count as a result of larger visitor numbers at our coasts last year. The Casualty Review Panel, consisting of members from the MCA, Maritime Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB), RNLI, maritime industry, academia and sports governing bodies, meets once a year to discuss the circumstances surrounding fatal maritime incidents and makes a judgement about whether a lifejacket or buoyancy aid might have saved a person’s life. According to the Panel, over the past 14 years, more than 200 lives could have been saved by wearing a lifejacket or buoyancy aid. The findings come ahead of nex...