MARINE STATISTICS - 1998

Foreword

This document has been prepared in order to provide users of Canadian maritime safety data with selected statistics on annual occurrences.

Users of the statistics are advised that, in a live database, the occurrence data are constantly being updated. Consequently, the statistics can change slightly over time. The statistics presented in this document reflect the TSB database updated as of 9 April 1999.

The TSB is an independent agency operating under its own Act of Parliament. Its sole aim is the advancement of transportation safety.

Comments on this document can be forwarded to the following address:

Transportation Safety Board of Canada
Safety Analysis and Communications Directorate
Place du Centre
200 Promenade du Portage
4th Floor
Gatineau, Quebec
K1A 1K8

Telephone (819) 994-3741
Facsimile (819) 997-2239
E-mail: communications@bst-tsb.gc.ca

© Minister of Public Works and Government Services Canada 1999
Cat. No. TU1-1/1998 ISBN 0-662-64250-3

OVERVIEW

ACCIDENTS

General Statistics (Table 1)

• In 1998, 548 marine accidents involving 591 vessels were reported to the TSB. Of these, 489 (89%) were shipping accidents; the remainder were accidents aboard ship.
• The 1998 total of 489 reported shipping accidents represents a decline of 8% compared to 1997. Over the last eight years, shipping accidents have declined by an average of almost 9% per year, from 1,056 in 1990 to 489 in 1998.
• In 1998, 84% of the vessels involved in shipping accidents were Canadian-flag vessels. Almost 56% of these Canadian vessels were fishing vessels, representing the largest share of the Canadian vessels involved in shipping accidents during the last 10 years. While the number of Canadian vessels involved decreased and fluctuated over the 1990-98 period, the trend has been equivalent to an average decline of 9% per year from 994 ships in 1990 to 447 in 1998.
• Of the foreign-flag vessels involved in shipping accidents, 86% were commercial vessels. The 1998 total is 6% lower than 1997. The decrease in foreign-flag vessels involved from 1990 to 1998 is equivalent to an average decline of almost 8% per year from 178 ships in 1990 to 85 in 1998.
• The most frequent types of shipping accidents in 1998 were groundings, strikings, floodings and fires/explosions, as in most years since 1989. Between 1989 and 1998, the incidence of accident of all types decreased. Eight of ten accident types continued this decline in 1998, while the numbers of grounding and collision accidents increased only slightly. Between 1989 and 1998, flooding, grounding and fire/explosion accidents increased as a proportion of the total number of accidents.
• Since 1989, about half of the vessels involved in marine accidents have been fishing vessels. The next largest categories have been bulk carriers/OBO vessels (14%) and tugs/barges (13%). Vessels that pose a greater risk to persons and the environment, such as ferry/passenger vessels and tankers, were respectively involved in about 6% and 3% of the accidents. The proportion of bulk carriers involved in accidents increased by about 14% over the past year, but remains 44% lower than the1989-97 annual average. Fishing vessel accidents remained nearly constant.
• In 1998, 49 vessels were reported lost; 22% lower than in 1996 and 1997. There has been an average annual decline of about 13% since 1990, when 159 were reported lost. About half of the vessels lost were under 15 gross tons(1).
• In addition to shipping accidents, 50 to 60 accidents aboard ship are reported to the TSB annually. The 1998 total of 59 is comparable to the previous five-year annual average.
• There were 48 marine-related fatalities in 1998: it is twice that of the 1997 figure which was the lowest number recorded in the last 24 years. The increase in fatalities is attributable to two vessels sinking. In January, the Cypriot bulk carrier "FLARE" split in two and sank off Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon, resulting in the loss of 21 of her 25 crew members. This was the fifth worst fatal accident on record in Canadian waters since 1975. In November, five fishermen perished when the Canadian fishing vessel "BRIER MIST" sank off Rimouski, Que., raising the number of Canadian fishing vessel fatalities resulting from shipping accidents to 478 since 1975.

Marine Accidents (Tables 2-9)

• Geographical Region (See Appendix 2): In 1998, about three quarters of shipping accidents occurred in the Western Region (40%), the Maritimes Region (18%) and the Newfoundland Region (12%). The number of vessels lost is also the highest in these regions. Fishing vessel accidents dominate the accident record in these coastal waters. In the Western Region, tug and barge-related accidents are also common. The Central and Laurentian regions each account for 13% of 1998 accidents; within narrower waterways, the accidents often involve larger commercial vessels such as cargo/OBO vessels and tankers. Fishing vessels involved in accidents in the Newfoundland Region decreased significantly by 71% from 84 in 1997 to 49 in 1998. Fishing vessels involved in accidents in the Maritimes Region decreased as well, by 28% from 77 in 1997 to 60 in 1998. The remaining 4% of shipping accidents took place in Foreign Waters (3%) and in the Arctic Region (1%).
• Vessel Types: Of the 447 Canadian vessels involved in shipping accidents in 1998, 245 were fishing vessels. From 1989 to 1998, nearly 27% of fishing vessel shipping accidents were groundings. In 1998, 153 commercial vessels were involved in shipping accidents. Between 1989 and 1998, about 31% of these commercial vessel accidents were striking accidents. The remaining 49 Canadian vessels involved in accidents in 1998 were non-commercial/pleasure craft and service vessels. More than 55% of accidents (reported from 1989 to 1998) involving these types of vessels were strikings, groundings and fires/explosions. In addition, 85 foreign-flag vessels were involved in shipping accidents in Canadian waters in 1998; over 80% of these were commercial vessels. Between 1989 and 1998, more than 45% of the foreign-flag commercial vessel accidents were strikings and groundings.
• Factors: Over the past decade, in shipping accidents investigated where factors were assigned, over 80% of factors assigned to Canadian and/or foreign-flag vessels involved unsafe acts. In addition, unsafe conditions were identified in about 69% of vessels involved in accidents; the most common included atmospheric conditions (33%), followed by mechanical (13%), and vessel general condition (11%) (see table 5). For definitions, please see Appendix 1. More human and organizational factors will be discernible as unsafe conditions in the future with the implementation of the new TSB investigation and analysis methodology.
• Operating Certificates: Master/skipper/operator marine certificate statistics for Canadian vessels involved in shipping accidents show that: commercial vessels are usually under the command of persons with bona fide certificates; skippers/operators of fishing vessels often do not have marine certificates; and the masters/operators of other vessels usually hold certificates as required. When foreign-flag vessels are involved, they are usually under the command of persons with master foreign-going certificates.
• Vessels Lost: In 1998, 49 vessels were reported lost, 22% less than those reported for 1996 and 1997. Nearly 27% of vessels lost in 1998 were more than 30 years old. Of that 1998 total, 8 were commercial vessels (mainly tugs and barges, see Figure 1 below) and the remaining 41 were fishing vessels. Over the past 10 years, small fishing vessels (under 15 grt) account for the largest proportion of vessels lost in Canada, and their ages usually are distributed unevenly. Historically, in fishing vessels where the age can be identified, a large part of the vessels lost fall within the older age group (30 years old and over).

Figure 1 - Commercial Vessels Reported Lost in 1998

Date	Vessel Name	Vessel Type	GRT	Length	Age	Location	Occ. No.
13-Jan-98	RED FIR NO. 10	Tug	14	12	56	Troup Passage, N.E. Side of Lang Island, B.C.	M98W0003
16-Jan-98	FLARE	Bulk Carrier	16,947	181	26	40 M. SW St. Pierre & Miquelon, Cabot Strait	M98N0001
03-Apr-98	NARWHALE	Tug	123	23	53	Entrance Island, Georgia Strait, B.C.	M98W0056
17-Apr-98	BLASK	Tug	14	11	26	Northern Part of Marble Island, B.C.	M98W0066
22-Apr-98	P.F. STONE	Tug	38	13	43	Englefield Bay, B.C.	M98W0069
11-Aug-98	SAMMY F	Tug	11		9	Weeteeam Bay, B.C.	M98W0179
10-Oct-98	DARTMOUTH II	Ferry	252	20	42	Off Liverpool N.S.	M98M0107
16-Dec-98	CATHERWOOD TRANSPORTER NO.4	Barge	582	42	42	Amphritite Point, B.C.	M98W0266

Marine Incidents (Tables 1, 2 and 10)

• Pursuant to mandatory reporting requirements, 167 marine incidents were reported in 1998; 12 more than in 1997, but still 27 fewer than the 1989-96 average.
• The percentages, by region, of marine incidents reported in 1998 were as follows: Laurentian 32%, Western 32%, Central 15%, the Maritimes 10% and Newfoundland 7%. The remaining 4% of incidents reported took place in Foreign Waters (3%) and in the Arctic Region (1%).
• Between 1989 and 1993, the most common type of incident reported was close-quarters situations. Since 1994, engine/rudder/propeller incidents accounted for the largest group of incidents. These represented 36% of the total number of incidents in 1994, and more recently represented around 40% in 1997 and 1998.
• Most close-quarters situations reported over the last five years involved non-commercial/pleasure craft with cargo/bulk carrier/OBO vessels; many also involved tugs and barges, others involved fishing vessels with tugs/barges, other fishing vessels, passenger and ferry vessels. In comparison, when collisions actually take place, the majority are accidents between two or more fishing vessels, followed by cargo/bulk carrier/OBO vessels with other cargo/bulk carrier/OBO vessels or tug/barge vessels with other tug/barge vessels.

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1 The majority of vessels classified under unknown tonnage measured less than 15 grt.