Retractable Pilothouse Safety Alert Issued
The U.S. Coast Guard has issued new guidance on safety requirements and recommended safeguards for towing vessels equipped with retractable pilothouses.
Safety Alert 15-26, issued September 23, clarifies how existing requirements under Subchapter M apply to hazards associated with the vertical movement of retractable pilothouses.
The guidance follows a 2019 marine casualty investigation that resulted in Marine Safety Alert 13-19, An Important Safety Consideration – Hazards of Retractable Pilot Houses on Towboats.
The Coast Guard noted that while retractable pilothouses are not specifically addressed in Subchapter M, 46 CFR § 140.505(b) requires vessel equipment to be used according to the manufacturer’s recommended practices and in a manner that minimizes the risk of injury or death.
The new alert points to an additional requirement, 46 CFR § 144.820, which addresses guards in dangerous places. The regulation requires exposed hazards, including gears and rotating machinery, to be protected by a cover, guard or rail.
The examples in the regulation are not intended to be an exhaustive list of mechanical hazards, according to the Coast Guard. The agency said the requirement encompasses mechanical movements beyond rotation, including lifting, actuation and reciprocating motions.
For retractable pilothouses, those movements can create hazards involving shearing, pinching, compression and crushing, according to the alert.
The Coast Guard said the regulation therefore applies to the mechanical hazards associated with retractable pilothouses on inspected towing vessels, including hazards created by their vertical movement.
For inspected towing vessels enrolled in the Towing Safety Management System (TSMS) option, the alert also cites survey requirements under 46 CFR § 137.220. Surveys must verify that appropriate guards and rails are in place.
The surveys also must confirm that observed unsafe practices, fire hazards and other hazardous conditions have been corrected and that required guards and protective devices are in satisfactory condition, according to the Coast Guard.
The agency recommends that towing vessel owners and operators using retractable pilothouses take several additional safety measures.
Those measures include installing physical barriers such as guardrails, chains or localized enclosures around the pilothouse danger zone to control access to areas beneath or adjacent to the moving structure.
The Coast Guard also recommends clear hazard markings and visual and audible alarms that activate whenever the pilothouse is moving, including when an emergency-down feature is used.
Operators should establish written policies in their TSMS or operations manual governing retractable pilothouse operations and specifying the limited circumstances in which an emergency-drop feature may be used, the alert states.
The agency also recommends standardized crew training that covers crush hazards associated with moving superstructures, marked danger zones and company operating procedures and annual refresher training.
The alert was developed by the Coast Guard’s Office of Design and Engineering Standards and distributed by the Office of Investigations and Casualty Analysis.
