In welcoming the IMO’s revised guidelines for inspections, the international freight transport insurer TT Club exhorts governments to report findings to IMO on 2021 inspections as well as to increase the volume of inspections carried out.
This would helpfully inform the international maritime regulator and support industry players who are striving to ensure safety and reduce dangerous incidents.
Revised Guidelines for the Implementation of the Inspection of Cargo Transport Units (CTUs) issued last month by the IMO are aimed at helping governments to implement a uniform and safe inspection programme.
The IMO Circular (MSC.1/Circ.1649) seeks to broaden the inspections undertaken and align fully with safety guidance developed during the last decade (previous guidelines date from 2012).
Specifically, governments are now requested to select from all cargo types, rather than simply declared dangerous goods, for inspection. Furthermore, the guidance takes account of the issuance of the CTU Code, revisions of container safety regulations and the need to minimise the movement of invasive pests. The Circular also notes the continuing low rate submission of inspection reports and encourages an increase in such inspections.
Peregrine Storrs-Fox, TT’s Risk Management Director, remarked: “With the string of container ship fire casualties and fatal incidents at storage facilities, most recently at Chittagong (Chattogram), in our minds, our current concerns are manifest.
“They constantly remind us of the importance of adequate safety procedures in packing, handling and transporting the array of cargoes that have the potential to cause catastrophic incidents.
“With only five of the 179 governments affiliated with IMO submitting reports on inspections at the last Carriage of Cargoes and Containers (CCC) sub-committee meeting in September 2021, the industry urgently seeks more collaborative support from governments in combatting the potential circumstances and cargo packing practices that cause dangerous incidents.
“It would be much appreciated if more national reports undertaken during 2021 can still be reported for consideration at the next CCC this September. However, TT calls for a viable sample of inspections in future based on the new guidelines. In this regard, TT would urge strongly that governments enter dialogue with industry to understand how the latter can work with enforcement agencies to improve safety.”