Communiqués

TSB # M10/2005

THE TRANSPORTATION SAFETY BOARD OF CANADA ISSUES A SAFETY RECOMMENDATION AS PART OF ITS ONGOING INVESTIGATION INTO THE CAPSIZING OF THE RYAN'S COMMANDER

(Ottawa, Ontario, November 21, 2005) - The Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) recommended today that Transport Canada take immediate action to deal with the stability of small fishing vessels. The recommendation comes as part of the ongoing TSB investigation into the capsizing of the Ryan's Commander on September 19, 2004 in which two crew members died.

"The TSB has long had a concern for the stability of fishing vessels and has made recommendations on this issue in the past," said Charles Simpson, Acting Chairman of the TSB. "Simply stated, not enough has been done by Transport Canada to improve this unsafe condition," he added.

Today's recommendation calls for "the immediate implementation" by Transport Canada of recommendations originally issued by the TSB in November 2003. Those recommendations dealt with the stability of small fishing vessels related to the west coast investigation into the capsizing of the small fishing vessel Cap Rouge II. At that time, the Board recommended that:

The Department of Transport require all new inspected small fishing vessels of closed construction to submit stability data for approval.

and that:

The Department of Transport require all existing inspected small fishing vessels currently without any approved stability data be subjected to a roll period test and a corresponding freeboard verification not later than their next scheduled quadrennial inspection.

In its 2004-2005 Annual Report to Parliament, the Board made public its assessment of Transport Canada's response to the original recommendations as "Unsatisfactory," citing the continued risk for these vessels until action is taken. Since the release of the November 2003 recommendations, the TSB has started investigations into the capsizing of the following five small fishing vessels: the Hope Bay, the Prospect Point, the Melina and Keith II, the Ocean Tor and the Ryan's Commander. These occurrences have resulted in the death of 11 fishers.

Current regulations require that only some small fishing vessels submit stability data for approval. In May 2003, Transport Canada decided to modernize stability requirements and establish stability standards for all small fishing vessels. These changes are now scheduled to come into force in mid 2007.

Today, the Board recommends that:

The Department of Transport ensure that the Board's previous recommendations M03-05 and M03-06 are immediately implemented.

In September 2004, the Ryan's Commander capsized seven nautical miles off Cape Bonavista, Newfoundland and Labrador. The crew of six abandoned ship into an inflatable liferaft after transmitting a distress message. One crew member was subsequently rescued from the liferaft by a search and rescue helicopter. The remaining five crew members were thrown from the liferaft into the water as the liferaft came ashore. Two crew members died.

The TSB is an independent agency that investigates marine, pipeline, railway and aviation transportation occurrences. Its sole aim is the advancement of transportation safety. It is not the function of the Board to assign fault or determine civil or criminal liability.

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Background and Recommendation