Shock Mitigation Directory

'Pilot Overboard' by John Clandillon-Baker FNI

Having got past that immediate danger I started to concentrate on recovery. All London pilots undergo training with our cutter crews, who hold regular exercises in recovering casualties and I now have first hand experience that proves the training works really well. Remarkably my brain stayed crystal clear, concentrating on staying alive. I knew that my greatest risk now was from hypothermia so I worked at keeping my body heat in by keeping my legs together and jamming my cap down tight on my head. I then started looking for the pilot cutter. It was dark and there was a bit of a swell running and I could hear the crew talking to each other but then heard one state that he’d lost sight of me which caused me some concern!

I put my left hand up hoping that the retro-reflective tape on the jacket’s sleeve would improve my chances of being spotted. Fortunately that worked because as soon as I had raised my arm I heard a shout and the boat came round and alongside me very quickly. The coxswain did it first time, closing in and stopping the cutter in the perfect position for recovery. The crewman then managed to catch hold of me at the first attempt with the MateSaver pole, something that I know isn’t easy to achieve!

It was only when I was hauled aboard the cutter that I realised that I’d injured my ankle. Once ashore, there was a fast response paramedic, an ambulance and three police cars waiting to take me to hospital, where I was treated for mild hypothermia and informed that my ankle was broken. The experience hasn’t put me off. Climbing a pilot ladder has a certain risk attached to it and falling off is a foreseeable, but fortunately rare, accident for which we are trained. Using ladders is just part of the job and I now know that the extensive emergency training we receive really does work!”

This accident was investigated by the MAIB and the following is an extract from their report.

During discussions with the pilot, it became apparent that while climbing a ladder, he tends to keep his weight back for ease of climbing. At the time of the incident, he pilot continued in this position while attempting to transition onto deck. At the top of the pilot ladder he stopped with both feet on one ladder rung and placed his right hand on the after rail handhold. This being substantially outside the span of his shoulders and due to the weight distribution, caused his body to rotate about his right hand and foot as soon as he released his grip on the ladder with his left hand. Potentially, the asymmetric arrangement of the hand holds may have contributed to the difficulty in obtaining a firm grip.

One important aspect of this accident is that the space between the hand holds was 105cms which was also addressed in the MAIB report which referred to the following amendment to IMO A889:

...a gateway in the rails or bulwark, adequate handholds should be provided at the point of embarking on or disembarking from the ship on each side which should be not less than 70cm or more than 80cm apart. Each handhold should be rigidly secured to the ship’s structure at or near its base and also at a higher point, not less than 32 mm in diameter and extend not less than 1.2 m above the top of the bulwarks. Stanchions or handrails should not be attached to the bulwark ladder.

This provision has now been included in the latest IMO Resolution on pilot ladders, which will come into force in 2012 along with an updated IMPA bridge poster.

The UKMPA, through IMPA, have been at the forefront of the campaign to improve pilot ladder safety and this amendment along with the ISO 799 standard are a direct result of the hard work put in by pilot organisations around the World which should help prevent accidents such as Jon Stafford’s happening to others.

For more information see MOB Recovery

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