Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries Establishes Spring Safety Accident Prevention Measures... Special Inspection of Workplaces with Casualties

[Asia Economy Sejong=Reporter Dongwoo Lee] The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries announced on the 27th that it will implement customized safety measures from next month through May to prevent maritime accidents in spring.

Over the three months, the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries will establish and implement the "Spring Maritime Accident Prevention Measures," which include ▲ management of the most frequent fatal and recurring accidents ▲ management of vulnerable vessels to prevent major accidents ▲ strengthening preparedness and response to spring maritime traffic conditions.

First, to focus on managing the most frequent fatal and recurring accidents, the "Fatality Reduction Task Force" will be activated continuously. In particular, to prevent fishing vessel accidents, which account for 80% of all fatal accidents, a cooperative system will be established with the Fisheries Cooperative Federation's Fishing Vessel Safety Operation Headquarters, and emergency stop devices for fishing nets on fishing vessels will be continuously distributed. Special inspections will be conducted on vessels and workplaces where one or more fatalities have occurred due to maritime accidents, focusing on compliance with basic safety rules during operations. Prevention guidelines for the three major safety accidents?falls, entanglement in mooring lines, and suffocation?will be produced and distributed, and safety training for operations will also be conducted.

To prevent major accidents, intensive safety management will be promoted for multi-use vessels such as passenger ships and fishing boats, as well as hazardous material transport vessels. Joint safety inspections with related agencies will be conducted on all 164 coastal passenger ships, and compliance with quarantine guidelines to prevent the spread of COVID-19 will be checked. Additionally, outdated safety equipment (life jackets, fire hoses, etc.) on 27 government-subsidized passenger ships operating on national routes will be replaced.

Finally, in preparation for spring maritime traffic conditions, special inspections will be conducted on 4,407 navigational aids installed nationwide, and the operational status of 117 marine facilities, including marine bridges and offshore wind power complexes, will be checked. To secure the golden time in the early stages of accidents, joint maritime accident response drills will be conducted with related agencies during the farming season, and ship operation management will be strengthened by ensuring compliance with departure control standards when visibility restrictions are expected.

Jung Taesung, Director of the Maritime Safety Bureau at the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, said, "We will continue to carry out activities to spread a safety culture to ensure that basic safety rules are thoroughly observed at maritime and fisheries sites."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.