Company: Mayor Player
in the Tanker Segment
DOC: Identify
Main and Subsidiaries offices
Trade: World
Wide
Vessel Last
Call US Port: Sep 2011
Audit Type: ISM
Renewal
Area of
Audit: Emergency
Preparedness/Training/Rules & Regulations
It was observed in the Intermediate Verification
Audit Report that the Master has stated a yearly ship-shore exercise was
conducted with another vessel within the fleet. However, copy of the exercise
self evaluation was not available on board when requested. The auditor raised an observation, which was
found at the renewal audit, duly documented and reported to the company by the
Master and following the reporting system required by the SMS. The report was
send to the office and following day the observation closed by the responsible
officer from HQSE department, stating that is not a requirement to submit
self-evaluation reports of shipboard drills and ISM code does not mention this
requirement under chapter 8.
The analysis of the detected deviation, done by
the HQSE officer was superficial and although was evident from the company SMS
that there are procedures in place for shipboard drills (Oil Spill Response
& Emergency Notification Drills), these exercises include documents like
Current CFR for foreign vessels operating in water of US and vessel specific
Response Plans which contain guidelines/instructions that have to be taken in
to account as part of the exercise.
CFR 155.1015, state that every vessel design or
adapted to carry oil in bulk and operate in US navigable waters requires an
approved VRP. The VRP requires that all personnel with responsibilities under
plan receive training in their assignments, refresh and participate in the
exercises as necessary.
CFR 155.1055, state that vessel owner shall
maintain records to demonstrate training and make them available for inspection.
The training records may be on board, with the Q.I. or at U.S. location and
this shall be indicated in the VRP.
CFR 155.1060 identifies the following training
requirements:
Internal:
a.- Qualified individual
notification exercises, which must be conducted quarterly.
b.- Emergency
procedures exercises, which must be conducted quarterly.
c.- Shore-based
spill management team tabletop exercises, which must be conducted annually. In
a triennial period, at least one of these exercises must include a worst case
discharge scenario.
d.- Oil spill removal organization equipment
deployment exercises, which must be conducted annually.
e.- An exercise of the entire response plan, which
must be conducted every 3 years.
Yearly, at least one of b or d should be unannounced.
Self evaluation report shall be recorded.
External:
a.- area exercises
b.- Government initiated-unannounced exercises.
National Preparedness for response exercise program
(PREP) guidelines, state under section 2 “Guiding Principles”, that the VRP
holder must identify a Shore based Spill Management Team in the plan. The SMT
shall conduct an annual Tabletop Exercise (TTX). The VRP must be utilized in
the exercise to ensure SMT is familiar with the plan and is able to use it
effectively to conduct a spill response. If VRP cite the same SMT for all fleet
the SMT TTX shall be conducted once per year and all vessels should take credit
for the annual exercise.
Additionally to above mentioned, the approved vessel
response plan available on board requires within the program of exercises a
yearly exercise involving the master a SMT.
Therefore it is conclude that Currents CFR cite
in the shipboard drills and office response to emergency situations procedures,
require the self drill evaluation as internal training and to take credit of the yearly ship-shore exercise
(SMT TTX), the vessel must be provided with it. The results will be brought to
the crew attention at the next safety meeting on board for example. Although the
VRP does not mention where this records shall be and in view this may be required
by USCG, a front the doubt think the Wright place is on board.
Base in before said and taking in to account that the red
warning flag was raised when the observation was raised at the intermediate
verification, which was not properly considered, a NcN was raised to strongly
bring it to the attention of the ship operator.
The NcN against emergency preparedness was discard in
view that the investigation carried out revealed that the company SMS included
procedures for shipboard drills, which were done regularly as required by the
company and the CFR.
Therefore two possibilities left; the first one is to raise
the NcN under Resources & Personnel (6.4), because the HQSE officer showed
a lack of knowledge in view of his justification for closing out the
observation. The second will be to consider the Objective of ISM code
(1.2.3.1/1.2.3.2) in view that compliance with mandatory regulations or
applicable codes or standards recommended by administration were not taken in
to account.
The Flag Administration/R.O. issuing the DOC, proved to have failed by not
identifying this deviation from the stated regulations at the office audit and
if does, no other chance to issue the NcN under 1.2.3.2 “ISM Objective”.
However, because this problem was detected as a consequence of a no properly
closed observation report when doing an onboard audit, I will raise the NcN
under 6.4 of the ISM code.
Area under
Review:
Chapter 6; paragraph 6.4: The Company should ensure
that all personnel involved in the company’s safety management system have an
adequate understanding of relevant rules, regulations, codes and guide lines.
Objective
Evidence:
The
shipboard drill & office response to emergency situations procedures
included in the Company SMS mention as supporting documentation the VRP and
Code of Federal regulations, which certainly requires vessel to participate in
a yearly Spill Management Team Tabletop Exercise. Vessel can credit participation
by receiving and discussing exercise self evaluation report when the exercise
have been done with other ship within the fleet. In consequence the raised observation was
wrongly closed when was stated that there is not a requirement neither in the
ISM code chapter 8 nor in the company SMS to distribute the self evaluation
report among the fleet.
Root Cause:
- Lack of familiarization with the Code of Federal Regulation applicable to foreign vessel when sailing in US water.
- Lack of Familiarization with the Vessel Response Plan and the National Preparedness for response exercise program (PREP) guidelines.
