4/7/2003
That human factor again
The intertanko chairman, Lars Carlsson of Concordia, has pointed out that we are becoming so fixated about the phasing out of single-skinned ships that we are ignoring the fact that it is mostly people who get ships of any configuration into trouble, Lloyd's list writes in an editorial.
Nobody ever remembers that it was the sheer blinding incompetence of Captain Hazlewood's officer of the watch that put the Exxon Valdez at speed on to rocks that were so large that three hulls would have been insufficient to prevent the cargo escaping. Lars Carlsson uses the analogy of the airbag in road vehicles, pointing out that it is only effective at limiting the effects of some accidents.
Lars Carlsson suggests that the regulators ought to focus less on this particular issue of tanker structure when they should be spending more time on providing greater encouragement to quality operators. He is somebody who knows what he is talking about, Lloyd's list states.
Source
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Resuméer från Observer Sverige AB, Lloyd's List (GB)