News/Press Releases

Published in The Law, December 2009

"An Essex detective put international co-operation into practice during a fatality at sea - just weeks after being appointed chairman of a European marine investigation organisation.  Dc Simon Lofting, of the Marine Unit at Burnham, led an initial investigation into the death of a man on board a Dutch-registered ship involved in the construction of Greater Gabbard wind farm 18 miles off Harwich.
A second crewman was seriously injured in the November 12 incident.  Two Marine Unit officers carried out enquiries when the ship docked at Harwich while Dc Lofting collated information and liaised with the Dutch authorities and other maritime services.  It was established that the incident happened just outside British international waters and the inquiry was handed over to the Dutch.  Through Dc Lofting's work with the 2,500 strong International Association of Marine Investigators (IAMI), he was able to transfer evidence & information quickly and efficiently.
Dc Lofting was appointed chairman of the European section of IAMI in October.  In 2006 he became the only policer officer in Europe to qualify as a Certified Marine Investigator.  He said; 'My work regularly involves contacts with police forces and investigators around Europe and other parts of the world and the fatal accident in the North Sea was an example of Essex Marine Unit's excellent co-operation with international organisations.'  Dc Lofting's role with the IAMI also involves training others in specialist investigation and he hopes to start courses for officers from UK and European forces in the spring."
(posted 2/17/10)

National Boating Safety Advisory Council directs Coast Guard to address  propeller injury avoidance.

 By IBI Magazine

 The  National  Boating Safety Advisory Council (NBSAC) has directed the US  Coast  Guard to address propeller strike prevention in five areas, some of  which  are  in  conjunction with efforts under way in the marine industry.  But  the  advisory  body  fell  short  of  calling for mandatory propeller  guards, and instead asked for a study on available technologies. 

Propeller  injuries  resulted  in 31 fatalities and were involved with 186  accidents  in  2004. Propeller injuries are ranked 9th in reported boating  accidents.  By  comparison, falls overboard resulted in 271 fatalities and  capsizing resulted in 203 fatalities.  The  NBSAC's  first  recommendation  was  that  the  Coast Guard develop a  pre-rental  education  package  for all rental motorboats operations to be  distributed to the general public for the 2007 boating season. 

The  advisory  board  also  recommended  that  the  Coast  Guard  begin  a  rulemaking  process  that  would require manufacturers of new recreational  motorboats  to  install  an  engine cut-off device that prevents continued  operation in the event of the operator being displaced from the helm. This  effort  would  complement  a similar effort by the National Association of  State  Boating  Law Administrators (NASBLA) in its Engine Cut-Off Switches  model act approved on September 21, 2005. 

The  US  Coast  Guard should also begin a rulemaking process, according to  the council, that would require a boat operator to wear the engine cut-off  switch  link  while the engine is running. This requirement would apply to  waters  subject to the jurisdiction of the United States but not to solely  state waters.  "These  are  common  sense measures, and we will be working with the Coast  Guard  to  get  the  word out to our manufacturers and boaters about these  NBSAC   initiatives,"   said  Monita  Fontaine,  NMMA  vice  president  of  government relations, in a statement.

The NBSAC also recommended that the Coast Guard begin a rulemaking process  that would require the operator of a motorboat to shut off the engine if a  swimmer  is  in  close proximity to or holding onto the boarding platform,  boarding deck, boarding step, or boarding ladder of the boat.  Finally,  the  NBSAC  also  recommended  that  the Coast Guard continue to  pursue  its  previous resolutions recommending propeller injury prevention  measures with a risk-based decision making approach. 

The group also "encouraged" the Coast Guard to initiate a research project  to  test propeller guard technology for safety, drivability, and efficacy.  "We  need  thorough  testing on equipment that claims to prevent propeller  injuries  because  the  data  is  incomplete  and  the  technologies being  developed are untested," Fontaine said.  The  NBSAC  was  established  by  the  Federal Boat Safety Act of 1971 and  consists  of 21 members drawn equally from state officials responsible for  boating  safety  programs;  representatives  of  the boating industry; and  representatives  of  national  recreational  boating organisations and the  general  public.  The  law  requires  the  Coast Guard to consult with the  council  in  prescribing  federal regulations, and regarding major boating  safety matters. 

(11 April 2006)

SERVICE CANADA TO DELIVER LICENCES TO PLEASURE CRAFT OPERATORS ON BEHALF OF TRANSPORT CANADA

No. H213/05
For release November 7, 2005

OTTAWA - Transport Minister Jean-C. Lapierre and Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development Belinda Stronach, today announced the signing of an agreement for Service Canada to deliver licences to pleasure craft operators across the country on behalf of Transport Canada. A pleasure craft licence is the number that must be placed on the side of a recreational vessel to assist law enforcement and search and rescue organizations in identifying the owner of the craft.

"There are millions of recreational watercraft across the country and thousands more are expected to be purchased by Canadians over the coming years," said Minister Lapierre. "Today, we are joining forces with Service Canada to increase the number of locations where Canadians can apply for pleasure craft licences and to provide search and rescue and law enforcement agencies with 24 hours a day, seven days a week access to licence information during emergencies."

"Our goal is to make it easier for Canadians to access government services," said Minister Stronach. "The addition of pleasure craft licensing to the range of services available through Service Canada is an example of how we are working to bring better service to more Canadians."

The Canada Border Services Agency has been issuing pleasure craft licences to Canadians since the 1940s, and currently has 120 locations across Canada where Canadians can apply for a free licence. As of April 2006, Service Canada will take over these services at its 320 Service Canada Centres across the country. Canadians will have almost three times as many places to apply for their licences.

In addition to providing Canadians with easier access to service centres, Service Canada will develop a modern licensing system to provide search and rescue and law enforcement agencies with access to licence information 24 hours a day, seven days a week. This will allow them to respond to emergencies more quickly and effectively.

The Canada Border Services Agency will continue to provide licensing services until Service Canada implements its service. Information on licensing pleasure craft is available by phoning the Canada Border Services Agency info line at 1-800-461-9999 or Transport Canada's boating safety info line at 1-800-267-6687. The addresses and telephone numbers of the Canada Border Services Agency customs district offices are listed at: www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/contact/rco-e.html.

Transport Canada recognizes the contribution the Canada Border Services Agency has made to the administration of the licensing program and the sound foundation from which Service Canada will work to further improve the delivery of pleasure craft licenses to Canadians.

Under the Small Vessel Regulations of the Canada Shipping Act, all pleasure craft 15 gross tons or less and powered by an engine 10 horsepower (7.5
kilowatts) or more must be licensed or registered, regardless of where they operate in Canada. Transport Canada will continue to administer these regulations together with all other regulations applying to recreational vessels.

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Contacts:
Irène Marcheterre
Director of Communications
Office of the Minister, Ottawa
(613) 991-0700

Normand Bergeron
Office of the Minister of Human
Resources and Skills Development
(819) 994-2482

Marie-Josée Dubois
Communications
Transport Canada, Ottawa
(613) 993-0055

Media Relations
Service Canada, Ottawa
(819) 994-5559

Transport Canada is online at www.tc.gc.ca. Subscribe to news releases and speeches at apps.tc.gc.ca/listserv/ and keep up-to-date on the latest from Transport Canada.

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