IMCA: Man overboard in port - Seaman falls from quay access ladder

Description of Incident

A crew member fell overboard during operations alongside.

The incident occurred while a crane was being used to unload a smaller waste

container on the vessel to a larger one on the quay. To access the quay from the

vessel, it was necessary to use a fixed ladder on the wall of the quay. This was in

poor condition, and was missing a step halfway up. While the crew member was

climbing up the ladder, the crew member was distracted by movement of the

vessel’s mooring lines, just at the point of placing a foot where the missing step

should have been. The crew member lost balance, fell onto the gunwale, and then

into the water. There was an immediate activation of the vessel’s emergency

response procedure, and the crew member was safely recovered without serious

injury.

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