Ship door that killed man shut too fast

An hydraulic fire door which closed at twice the allowable speed, trapping a 34-year-old man, was named as a contributor to the death of the Oceanic Discoverer's chief engineer at the Port of Napier almost three years ago.

The Transport Accident Investigation Commission has released its report into the incident, which occurred on board the Australian-registered passenger ship on February 19, 2009, when it was docked.

The report said the crew was conducting a fire and emergency drill and closing and testing the hydraulic water-tight doors.

The master closed the doors remotely from the bridge and some minutes later the chief engineer opened the doors to the engine room.

"But for some reason he became trapped by the door as he passed through the doorway," the report said. "The chief engineer was trapped in the door for more than eight minutes before he was found and the crew was able to free him.

"He was resuscitated but never regained consciousness and later died in hospital."

The doors were normally set to "local-control mode", which meant they would not automatically close after someone had walked through. At the time of the accident, the doors were in "remote-close mode", when they would automatically close when the user released the opening handle.

The report said the door had been set to close at twice the allowable closing speed, which would have probably contributed to the accident.

The chief engineer, an Australian of Sri Lankan descent, possibly tried to pass through the door before it was fully opened and "for some reason it began closing and trapped him".

"It is possible that the audible alarm warning that the door was closing, was not working at the time," the report said. "A failure of the audible alarm may have contributed to the accident."

The commission's investigation found the water-tight door did not comply with the minimum requirements of the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea. The safety management systems on board did not ensure the doors were maintained in line with regulations or good marine engineering standards.

The commission recommended Maritime New Zealand and the International Marine Organisation "address" the issue of water-tight door safety. It also wanted the Australian Maritime Safety Authority to address issues with the safety management system on board the Oceanic Discoverer.

The manufacturer of the water-tight doors would also have to look at possible design issues, while the International Association of Classified Societies and its surveyor members would be alerted to the safety issues outlined in the report, so they would be aware when conducting tests and surveys on water tight doors.