Stored energy in. CHIRP report M2715 describes an officer injured while a tender was being prepared for towing from a swimming platform. The vessel was adrift, and the report does not identify time pressure as a factor.
As the vessel moved ahead, the towing line fouled on the upper section of a bitt and came under load. The officer approached and tried to kick it free. When the line released, it recoiled, striking the officer on the arm and neck and briefly rendering them unconscious.
A fouled line can look like a small problem that needs a quick correction. Once it is under load, the task has changed. Nobody should approach it until the operation is paused and the tension has been removed.
CHIRP refers to MGN 520 and recommends stronger use of dynamic risk assessment and intervention when conditions depart from the plan.
During your next towing or line-handling operation, how does the deck team confirm that the load has been removed before anyone approaches a fouled line?
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