Recent Updates
March 08, 2010
COURT DENIES ICICLE SEAFOOD?S MOVE TO REDUCE $1.3 MILLION DOLLAR PUNITIVE DAMAGE AWARD
March 03, 2010
ALASKA RANGER DOCUMENTARY - MAYDAY, BERING SEA TO AIR ON DISCOVERY CHANNEL
March 02, 2010
Three Crewmen Die When Cruise Ship Crashes While Docking In Egypt
February 22, 2010
ALASKA CRAB BOAT NORTHWESTERN DOCKS AT SEATTLE FISHERMANS TERMINAL
January 29, 2010
ICICLE SEAFOODS ORDERED TO PAY INJURED SEAMAN ATTORNEY FEES FOR MAINTENANCE AND CURE TRIAL
January 28, 2010
FOUR CREWMEN RESCUED FROM MISSING TUGBOAT
January 25, 2010
ALASKA FACTORY TRAWLER FLEET BEGINS 2010 FISHING SEASON
January 20, 2010
EXXON OIL TANKER LOSES POWER IN PRINCE WILLIAM SOUND
January 20, 2010
MARATHON OIL DECKHAND DIES AFTER FALL OVERBOARD
January 20, 2010
ALASKA FISHING VESSEL ORDERED TO RETURN TO PORT FOR SAFETY VIOLATIONS
Marine Safety
EXXON OIL TANKER LOSES POWER IN PRINCE WILLIAM SOUND
Posted by: James Beard
January 20, 2010
An 832-foot Exxon Oil tanker carrying 25 million gallons of crude oil briefly lost power as it was exiting Price William Sound on Sunday. Two tugs that were escorting the tanker, along with the tanker's automated steering system, were able to keep the tanker on course. The tanker was reportedly without power for approximately 30 minutes. The vessel was able to make safe harbor where it was inspected by the Coast Guard and cleared for sailing. The vessel's next port was scheduled to be San Francisco. The tanker has several layers of backup systems, which include three backup power systems, that allowed it to continue on its voyage. The incident adds evidence to pending legislation for increased safety regulations for oil tankers in Prince William Sound.
MARATHON OIL DECKHAND DIES AFTER FALL OVERBOARD
Posted by: James Beard
January 20, 2010
Deckhand Gary Adams of Waterloo, Ohio has died after falling overboard off the Marathon Oil towing vessel, TRI-STATE. The vessel was reportedly involved in early morning docking operations at the Marathon Petroleum dock near Kenova, West Virginia when the accident occurred. Adams was reportedly untying a mooring line when the TRI STATE was put into gear, causing Adams to lose his balance, fall into the water, and go under the barge. The United States Coast Guard is investigating the accident.
ALASKA FISHING VESSEL ORDERED TO RETURN TO PORT FOR SAFETY VIOLATIONS
Posted by: James Beard
January 20, 2010
The Coast Guard ordered the 77-foot fishing vessel, Topaz, to return to port for safety violations. The order came as a result of an at-sea boarding and safety inspection by the Coast Guard. Violations included failure to have survival suits on board. Survival suits are critical to crew and survival in cases of emergency. The Topaz was conducting a test trawl in a designated area at the time of the boarding. The vessel was escorted back to Kodiak Island where the Topaz's survival suits were waiting at the dock. The vessel was able to return to its fishing operations the following day. Four other vessels were boarded by the Coast Guard in the Kodiak area the following day and found to be in compliance with safety regulations.
NTSB RECOMMENDS REPLACEMENT VESSELS FOR ALASKAS AGING HEAD AND GUT FLEET
Posted by: James Beard
December 10, 2009
The National Transportation and Safety Board has recommended regulations to permit replacement of aging Alaska head and gut fishing vessels. In 2007, the National Marine Fisheries published a rule implementing Amendment 80 to the ground fishery management plan for the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands. Amendment 80 identified and limited the number of vessels that would be eligible to fish for certain species of ground fish. The vessels identified as eligible to fish in part 679 of the regulation were:
SMALL BOAT CARRYING 21 ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS SEIZED IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
Posted by: James Beard
December 07, 2009
A small 25 foot open skiff, (panga), carrying 21 illegal immigrants was stopped by U.S. Custom and Coast Guard officials 14 miles off La Jolla, California. The vessel tried to flee and avoid capture when spotted. The operator of the vessel was arrested and is anticipated to be charged as a smuggler. The overloaded boat had 20 men and one woman on board, all Mexican National citizens.
PREVENTING REPETITIVE STRESS INJURIES ABOARD FISH PROCESSING VESSELS
Posted by: James Beard
December 07, 2009
It is the duty of fishing vessel owners and employers to teach their crewman how to avoid repetitive stress injuries. It is also the duty of the vessel owners and employers to provide their crewmen with proper tools and equipment to avoid such injuries. Proper risk assessments should be preformed by all employers to minimize the risk of injuries to crewmen doing repetitive fish processing tasks.
INJURED ALASKA CREWMAN EVACUATED FROM F/V CLIPPER SURPRISE
Posted by: James Beard
November 20, 2009
A crewman with an eye injury has been medically evacuated from the fishing vessel CLIPPER SURPRISE. The Coast Guard responded to the request for evacuation from the CLIPPER SURPRISE which was located 50 miles north of Dutch Harbor, Alaska. Holden Jonan-Serrano was reportedly injured when he was struck in the head by a pipe. The extent of his injuries are not known at this time. He has been transported to Anchorage, Alaska for medical attention.
OREGON COMMERCIAL CRAB FISHERIES MOST DEADLY ON WEST COAST
Posted by: James Beard
November 20, 2009
It is well recognized that working as a commercial fisherman is one of the deadliest jobs in the world. On average, there are 128.9 commercial fishing deaths per 100,000 workers. This rate is over 30 times higher than all combined occupations. Even more sobering, according to recent research released by The National Institute for Occupational Safety (NIOSH), is the fact that Oregon crab fisherman have a death incident nearly six times higherthan other commercial fisheries, and nearly ten times higher than crab fisherman working in similar waters in Washington.
INVESTIGATIVE COAST GUARD HEARINGS CLOSE ON PARASAILING ACCIDENT
Posted by: James M. Beard
October 12, 2009
The Coast Guard has finished three days of formal investigative hearings with respect to the parasailing accident that killed two women in late August, 2009.
CREWMEMBER MEDEVACED TO ST PAUL ALASKA FROM FISHING VESSEL BOUNTIFUL
Posted by: James M. Beard
October 12, 2009
The Coast Guard medevaced a 32 year old crewmember with reported symptoms of pneumonia from the fishing vessel BOUNTIFUL to the St. Paul Clinic. The fishing vessel BOUNTIFUL was 150 miles northwest of St. Paul Alaska. The crewmember was reportedly delivered safely to St. Paul Alaska where he was then taken by life flight medical services to Anchorage.
Two Swimmers Drown After Boat Drifts Away
Posted by: Joseph S. Stacey
August 07, 2009
The bodies of two swimmers, a 57-year old male and his 13 year-old nephew, have been recovered from Lake St. Clair near Detroit, Michigan on Tuesday. Macomb County Sheriff Mark Hackel reported that the two had jumped into the water to go swimming with a 31-year old relative. Their pontoon boat, however, drifted away a significant distance with a 73-year old woman aboard. Rescue crews were able to rescue the 31-year old male, however were unable to locate either the 57-year old or the 13-year old. Hackel did not specify whether they were wearing life jackets.
The law office of Beard Stacey Trueb & Jacobsen, LLP strongly urges all those on a boat, whether professionally or for pleasure, to wear the proper safety equipment. This equipment will help save your life should an accident such as this occur. The maritime lawyers at BSTJ, LLP represent injured mariners throughout the nation in claims involving the Jones Act and General Maritime Law. For any questions regarding maritime law or injuries sustained while working aboard a vessel, contact us at 206.282.3100 or visit our website at atsealawyer.com.
$400,000 RECOVERY FOR FISH BOAT DECKHAND
Posted by: James M. Beard
June 01, 2009
Fish Boat Deckhands who are working ashore preparing their fishing boats for work at sea may recover compensation under the Jones Act for their negligent injury. Beard Stacey Trueb and Jacobsen recovered $400,000 in compensation for a fishing trawler deckhand who fractured his arm when he fell from the top of a net pile on the dock. In preparation to put the fishing net aboard the vessel, the 20,000-pound net bundle had been wrapped with a lifting strap. A forklift was then used to attempt to pull on the strap to tighten down the net. The strap was not safely anchored to the forklift, and came loose while under heavy tension. The negligence claim was based upon the improper and unsafe manner of work. It is important to recognize that seamen may still be in the services of the vessel and entitled to coverage under the Jones Act as long as they are doing ships work, even though their accidents occurred on shore. Under Federal maritime law, an injured crewman may recover benefits for pain and suffering, lost wages, medical bills, healthcare costs, retraining costs, and for physical and psychological injuries.
NORTHWEST RECREATIONAL BOATING FATALITIES UP 18%
Posted by: Joseph S. Stacey
June 20, 2008
Although it is still early in the recreational boating season, recreational boating fatalities in the Northwest have risen by 18% over last year's rate, according to the Coast Guard.
COMMERCIAL FISHING ONE OF THE MOST DANGEROUS JOBS FOR U.S. WORKERS, NORTHWEST DUNGENESS MOST DANGEROUS FISHERY ON PACIFIC COAST
Posted by: Joseph S. Stacey
May 28, 2008
A study by the Center for Disease Control reaffirmed commercial fishing's status as one of the most dangerous occupations for U.S. workers, especially on the Pacific Coast.
NEW VESSEL SECURITY OFFICER RULE
Posted by: Joseph S. Stacey
May 28, 2008
The Coast Guard is implementing a new interim rule, effective June 19, 2008, concerning the training and certification of Vessel Security Officers (VSOs). Currently, all VSOs are self-certified by the vessel owner or operator as being properly trained in their vessel security duties. However, under the new rule, all VSOs must comply with new training and qualification standards and be certified by the Coast Guard.
All VSOs will need to have new VSO endorsements to their STCW certifications by July 1, 2009. To obtain these endorsements, VSOs will have to pass new competence-based training for security officers, which is currently being developed by the Coast Guard with the assistance of several organizations that currently offer similar training.
Beard Stacey Trueb & Jacobson wants to remind all VSOs and employers to meet this new rule. If you are affected by this new regulation, visit http://www.uscg.mil/stcw/mmic-appcourses.htm to ensure that you are in compliance.
NEWEST EPIRB TECHNOLOGY ESSENTIAL IN RESCUE OF 3 OFF CAPE COD
Posted by: Joseph S. Stacey
May 27, 2008
The Coast Guard rescued the three-member crew of the fishing vessel Donna Maria on Monday evening, who were forced to abandon ship more than 180 miles southeast of Cape Cod. A Falcon jet and Jayhawk helicopter were dispatched when a sailing vessel, the ING Coffer, relayed the distress calls from the sinking vessel.
According to John Tomaszewski, a search and rescue controller at the Coast Guard Command Center in Boston, the successful rescue of all three crewmembers hinged on their possession of a 406MHz Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon, or EPIRB. As Mr. Tomaszewski said, "the key to this case was the relay of information between all parties involved that allowed us to respond quickly. The EPIRB aboard the vessel was essential to allow us to monitor the location of the crew in distress."
While the Donna Maria's distress signal might have been picked up if they had used an older-model EPIRB, that will not be the case for much longer. Beginning Feb. 1, 2009, the Coast Guard and other search and rescue personnel will only monitor mayday calls that are broadcast using digital 406MHz EPIRB beacons. Older 121.5 MHz EPIRB distress signals will no longer be detected or sent directly to search and rescue personnel.
We at Beard Stacey Trueb & Jacobson want to remind mariners to make the switch to this lifesaving technology. EPIRBs are essential safety devices that can drastically shorten the time between catastrophe and rescue, and can mean the difference between life and death for both commercial and recreational boaters.
PACIFIC GLACIER CREW TRAINING PAYS OFF
Posted by: euser
March 07, 2008
The Pacific Glacier, home ported in Seattle, made it back to Dutch Harbor under it's own power after a fire threatened to destroy it in the Bering Sea.
"OPERATION SAFE CRAB" TO CONDUCT VESSEL SAFETY SPOT CHECKS
Posted by: euser
December 06, 2007
The Coast Guard will be conducting safety spot checks, voluntary dockside exams, and offering basic safety training in various Northwest ports from November 26-28, 2007 as part of "Operation Safe Crab."
