During mooring operations, and while a 25’ tender was simultaneously being secured alongside the superyacht, the yacht’s aft spring line unexpectedly came under pressure.
The Chief Officer’s fingers were caught between the mooring line and the deck cleats, resulting in three broken fingers and nail and skin lacerations. The chief officer was working alone.
The incident prompted the company to introduce safety improvements during mooring operations to prevent such accidents in the future.
According to the incident report, the company should consider sourcing smaller diameter custom length mooring lines to secure the line’s working end aboard the tender. This change would leave only the spliced loop to be secured aboard the super yacht, eliminating the risk of two bitter ends being secured over each other on the yacht’s deck cleat. They should also consider switching to a more flexible line and installing snubbers to absorb stress on the deck cleats. These measures will help reduce the likelihood of accidents and injuries during mooring procedures.
Additionally, the company proposed additional training for all crew members working with lines on deck, highlighting the dangers of working alone during mooring operations.
