# Bulk Carrier Casualties



## oldman 80

In the Derbyshire Forum Posting #138 indicates that between 1980 and 1994 a total of 149 bulk carriers were lost with a total of 1144 lives.
Has anyone got any information as to whether those figures have been updated at all since they were first researched.


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## oldman 80

oldman 80 said:


> In the Derbyshire Forum Posting #138 indicates that between 1980 and 1994 a total of 149 bulk carriers were lost with a total of 1144 lives.
> Has anyone got any information as to whether those figures have been updated at all since they were first researched.


Sorry:- Should read "In the Derbyshire Thread" - not forum.


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## alastairrussell

The numbers I mentioned in my posting #138 were from Lord Donaldson's inquiry into the sinking of the Derbyshire. 

If you Google “ MV Derbyshire Sinking” and open up the British Parliament Hanzard records(3 july 1996), they state these figures along with some really shocking information on 'iffy' bulkcarrier construction procedures and operational standards. They also state that 9 of these ships were lost in the year 1994 along with 123 crew.

In another post in this forum (can't find it at the moment) I referred to a Japanese Government research paper stating that between the years 1978 to 2000, 2067 crew were lost with 1126 of them being attributed to a structural failure in the hull.

Alastair


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## stein

From the intercargo website:

The 2011 Intercargo Bulk Carrier Casualty Report noted that 13 dry bulk vessels and 39 lives were lost in 2011 and that half of the lives lost were on ships with cargo related issues. Furthermore, one of the vessels lost was carrying nickel ore, and this cargo in particular remains a cause for serious concern within the dry bulk industry. We trust that no effort will be spared to investigate the causes of these incidents.
These figures show a slight deterioration, in terms of vessels lost but a decrease in lives lost, compared to those for 2010, when 44 lives were lost on 7 vessels. However, it is noted that the overall ten year rolling average of losses remains on a downward trend, with an average of 24 lives and 6.8 ships per year lost in the period 2002-2011.


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## oldman 80

alastairrussell said:


> The numbers I mentioned in my posting #138 were from Lord Donaldson's inquiry into the sinking of the Derbyshire.
> 
> If you Google “ MV Derbyshire Sinking” and open up the British Parliament Hanzard records(3 july 1996), they state these figures along with some really shocking information on 'iffy' bulkcarrier construction procedures and operational standards. They also state that 9 of these ships were lost in the year 1994 along with 123 crew.
> 
> In another post in this forum (can't find it at the moment) I referred to a Japanese Government research paper stating that between the years 1978 to 2000, 2067 crew were lost with 1126 of them being attributed to a structural failure in the hull.
> 
> Alastair


Thanks for that Alastair - sorry I didn't get your message sooner - I've been indisposed / deeply involved in another matter - must have missed your posting as a result.

That Japanese report is certainly interesting and I am beginning to wonder how many of these losses were Cast Bulkers and how many had departed from iron ore ports in Australia.

Structural failures are something we were constantly battling to prevent on the OBO's I sailed in. Welding all day, welding all night whenever the opportunity arose - there were always cracks to catch up on - but I wonder if " at sea " was the best place to do it.
Certainly much preferable to not doing it at all, that cannot be disputed, - and at least my ship eventually reached the breakers yard - not the bottom of the ocean, as did so many.


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## oldman 80

stein said:


> From the intercargo website:
> 
> The 2011 Intercargo Bulk Carrier Casualty Report noted that 13 dry bulk vessels and 39 lives were lost in 2011 and that half of the lives lost were on ships with cargo related issues. Furthermore, one of the vessels lost was carrying nickel ore, and this cargo in particular remains a cause for serious concern within the dry bulk industry. We trust that no effort will be spared to investigate the causes of these incidents.
> These figures show a slight deterioration, in terms of vessels lost but a decrease in lives lost, compared to those for 2010, when 44 lives were lost on 7 vessels. However, it is noted that the overall ten year rolling average of losses remains on a downward trend, with an average of 24 lives and 6.8 ships per year lost in the period 2002-2011.


Thanks to you also Stein - missed your posting also for much the same reason.
Will try and get back to it soonest when and if this other matter is resolved. It's a battle, but at least your comments are posted - that's what is important.
I question if things are really getting any better - seriously I do, but maybe I'm becoming a bit obsessed with it all - that too is possible, I suppose.
(Sad)


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