Calling for Safety Over Sight: Enclosed Spaces on Superyachts and the Importance of Gas Detection

Superyachts, known for their luxury and aesthetic pleasures, are drowned in a safety concern that left many hearts fluttering. A recent case study that emerged from CHIRP Maritime’s Superyacht Feedback shook the maritime industry awake to a glaring safety oversight. A reporter, who laboured on a commercial yacht less than 500gt, discovered the frightening claim that there were no enclosed spaces onboard. This assumption led to the absence of any gas-detection equipment, leaving everyone in the dark about the safety statuses of potential enclosed spaces, such as bilge spaces, chain lockers, and steering flats.

The realization is harrowing: gas-testing equipment is not an option but a necessary life-saving approach. Every vessel, without exception, needs to be readied to conduct gas tests, a part of a structured permit-to-work system. The lack of such a system stage sets the ground for real and preventable risks of asphyxiation, poisoning, and disastrous incidents.

Despite regulations mandating safety measures for enclosed spaces, implementation at the design stage is inconsistent, particularly in the superyacht sector. Claims of ’no enclosed spaces’ on a vessel reflect a significant lapse in regulatory design safety management. CHIRP rightly urges vessel operators and regulators to rectify this oversight and ensure enclosed spaces are identified, marked, and documented along with ensured readiness of gas detection equipment.

Together with other maritime organisations, CHIRP is working towards establishing an internationally recognized sign for enclosed spaces. This global initiative seeks to enable all seafarers, irrespective of the vessel they serve on, to promptly identify these hazardous spaces. The proposed standardization of signs is a positive stride towards removing ambiguity and reinforcing safe working procedures across the maritime industry.

The incident disclosed in CHIRP’s case study underlines the dire need for improved communication flow from the bottom up and top down within maritime companies. Both management responses to safety concerns and the existing safety culture within companies need a revamp for the sake of the industry’s backbone - its workers. With a renewed focus on the safety of those on board, the occurrence and potential disastrous consequences of these overlooked areas can be thwarted.