What happened?
Once whilst out at sea, I was securing the baits onto small hooks, and the line suddenly became tangled. As it tangled, one of the small hooks tore through my pinky finger. Thankfully, on this occasion, I was working with small hooks, a larger one could have resulted in a much more significant injury, or potentially worse.
What I learned:
When handling sharp equipment (such as hooks), it is important to consider all of the factors that can be managed or controlled to minimise and avoid injury to crew members.
tips and tools
It is important to be proactive in mitigating potential hazards on board a vessel to ensure a safe working environment. Regular risk assessments should be conducted on the vessel to identify potential risks. All crew members should be trained to recognise hazards, and understand the four steps of risk assessment:
- Identify hazards
- Consider the risks associated with each hazard
- Control the risks
- Practice, review and document
Resources:
- AMSA Incident report
- ASMA Risk Assessment Checklist, including understanding what could cause a hazard
- AMSA safety courses