Common Hazards

Risk of:

• Adverse health effects e.g. respiratory problems.
• Fire.
• Death.

Possible causes:

Exposure to:

• Dusty cargoes or respiratory sensitisers.
• Flammable, toxic, poisonous or corrosive cargoes.
• Fumigated cargoes.
• Gases due to decomposition or bacterial action of some cargoes.
• Vehicle exhaust emissions.

Risk of:

• Increased risk of an accident or incident.

Possible causes:

• Weather: cold or wet weather can reduce concentration and make manual tasks more difficult.
• Tidal movements can have an effect on the safety of access to ships and increase the risk of collision between dockside equipment and the vessel.

Risk of:

• Increased risk of accident or incident through poor perception or physical exhaustion.

Possible causes:

• Lack of job rotation.
• Unpredictable ship arrival times.
• Requirement for a fast turnaround.
• Long hours, pace and intensity of the work.
• Physically demanding nature of the job - close to sailing time the work becoming more frantic.
• Excessive glare or inadequate lighting.
• Working in cramped, confined conditions.

Risk of:

• Serious injury or death due to being hit by falling or moving object.

Possible causes:

• Loose, incorrectly or poorly slung fittings and fixtures.
• Unstable or poorly loaded cargo.

Risk of:

• Sprains, strains and musculoskeletal disorders.
• Serious injury or death.

Possible causes:

• Manual handling of heavy, awkward or wet ropes.
• Being caught in the ropes or winches on board the vessel.
• Back lash if the rope breaks on the dock or jetty.

Risk of:

• Minor injury, concussion, serious injury or death.

Possible causes:

• Wet or icy surfaces.
• Poor housekeeping.
• Badly stowed ropes, cables, lashing gear.
• Inadequate lighting.

Risk of:

• Sprains, strains and musculoskeletal disorders.

Possible causes:

• Operating container cranes, straddle carriers, tug masters and so on.
• Lifting, carrying and manoeuvring loads, lifting gear and attachments.

Risk of:

• Serious injury or death due to a fall from height.

Possible causes:

• Carrying out trimming, sheeting, container lashing operations, securing loads, accessing the hold and working on board the ship.
• Working around unfenced dock edges.
• Inadequate access to the ship.

Risk of:

• Serious injury or death e.g. being run over, crushed or falling from a vehicle.
• Property damage.

Possible causes:

• Lack of traffic management.
• Unsafe systems of work.
• Mounting and dismounting from vehicles.
• Lack of pedestrian and vehicle segregation.