The ship’s cook used an oven cleaner containing sodium hydroxide while cleaning the galley after a mealtime. The cleaner was sprayed onto all greasy areas, including the extractor hood over the cooker (which was above head height) and left for some time to dissolve the grease.
When the cook returned to inspect the sprayed area, the chemical cleaner dripped from the cooker hood into the cook’s eye, causing severe irritation and a burning sensation to the eyeball.
A crewmember called the master who irrigated the eye with a sterile eye wash to flush the chemical from the cook’s eye. The coastguard doctor was contacted as a precautionary measure; they advised that the crewmember be airlifted to a local hospital for further treatment.
