Overview
About 20 people, including 2 crew members, were on a tender vessel returning to shore from a permanently moored barge from a function when a passenger jumped overboard.
What happened
A passenger deliberately jumped overboard while the tender vessel was berthing.
As soon as the Master became aware of the incident, they immediately placed the engines in neutral. This eliminated the risk of propeller contact with the passenger in the water.
The Master confirmed the passenger wasn’t hurt and could swim before instructing them to go to the vessel’s swim platform.
With help from the crew and another passenger, the passenger re-boarded safely.
The Master completed berthing without further incident.
Investigation findings
The Master:
- responded quickly and decisively.
- kept control of the vessel throughout the incident by coordinating with crew and passengers. This ensured the passenger's safe re-boarding.
- provided documentation outlining existing safety protocols.
- proposed measures to prevent this from happening again, including:
- updating their safety management system with enhanced passenger briefings
- training crew appropriately
- re-assessing the number of crew on board.
The passenger admitted their actions, accepted responsibility and apologised. Despite this, the incident still breached maritime safety regulations under the National Law.
Safety message
Vessel owners must ensure their vessels are appropriately crewed to manage passengers.
Masters and crew must be trained in passenger management, including:
- undertaking head counts
- supervising passenger
- conducting person overboard drills.
Passengers also have obligations under the general safety duties. They must behave responsibly and comply with the vessel’s safe operating procedures while on board.