A Cartridge Reminder 

 

Respirator Protection for Benzene  

 

Higman Barge Lines ashore and afloat personnel are at times in hazardous chemical environments where exposure to benzene may occur. 

 

Here is a reminder to all employees to ensure they are properly protected in these environments.

 

According to Higman Marine's Personal Safety Manual - 14-6 Loading Vapor Recovery:

When loading products containing more than 0.5% benzene using vapor recover, a full-face (cartridge) respirator shall be worn during the connecting/disconnecting of hoses, sampling or other operation where there is a risk of exposure to cargo vapors.

 

Loading Non-Vapor Recovery:

When loading products containing more than 0.5% benzene and NOT using the vapor recovery system, a full-face (cartridge) respirator must be worn in regulated areas during the entire operation. The Tankerman-PIC shall load the barge closed hatch and ensure that the tanks are vented through the forward vent stack.

 

Discharging:

When discharging products containing more than 0.5% benzene a full-face (cartridge) respirator must be worn during connecting/disconnecting of hoses, at any time a hatch, ullage, or sounding tube is open, in the vicinity of the cargo pump or any area where there is the possibility of exposure to cargo vapors. Cargo tanks containing products with more than 0.5% benzene will be discharged closed hatch and all tanks will be vented through the forward vent stack.

 

Cartridges must be changed every 8 hours, before every watch, when the wearer experiences "breakthrough" or if the respirator becomes difficult to breathe, whichever comes first.

 

Seeing the potential risk to yourself & other crewmembers, it is vitally important that we take every precaution to ensure all Higman ashore personnel have chemical cartridges that haven't expired past the life span set by the manufacturer. The manufacturer of our cartridges (MSA) states the life span is 3 years from date of manufacturing.

 

Below you see the cartridge we all are familiar with. There are four numbers in bold black print.....these are the date of manufacturing.

• The first two numbers are for the week of the year made.
• The second two numbers are for the year made.

The cartridge shown below expired on the 36th week of 2008!

 

Let's go through our cartridge supplies to ensure our tankermen & trainees are protected!

Towboats and Technology

Make sure you know how it all works!

If you started in the towboat industry some 35 years ago, your wheelhouse was quite simple. A magnetic compass, a paper chart and a small screen, tube radar with a viewing hood completed your navigation gear. The engine room looked about the same as today but the diesel engines had little more than an oil pressure gauge, a temperature gauge and a tachometer to monitor the operation.

Tankerman in those days open loaded all kinds of cargoes that today are strictly closed loaded.

With all the changes and upgrades in today's towboats and barges, what is a crewmember's responsibility to keep up with the technology?

 46 CFR 15.405 states:

"Each credentialed individual must become familiar with the relevant characteristics of the vessel on which engaged prior to assuming his or her duties. As appropriate these include but are not limited to general arrangement of the vessel; maneuvering characteristics; proper operation of the installed navigation equipment; firefighting and lifesaving equipment; stability and loading characteristics; emergency duties and main propulsion and auxiliary machinery including steering gear systems and controls."

Does this mean you now need a PhD in vessel operations? The answer to that is probably no, but due diligence is required to ensure you are well up to speed on all your equipment and that you are knowledgeable in the characteristics of your tow.

Wheelhouse:

Navigation requires that a wheelman use "all available means" to safely get the tow from point "A" to point "B". This assumes that the wheelman can competently operate all onboard electronics; communication gear, navigation gear and systems monitoring equipment. They must understand and know how to operate the steering systems; follow-up and non-follow-up.

Take an inventory of what is in your wheelhouse and then carefully assess what areas you might be weak in.

Are you comfortable with your radar; how to tune it, how to use it to its maximum potential?

• Do you understand the wheelhouse power grid? How does each piece of critical navigation and communications gear get its 12 volt DC or 120V AC? Where are any fuses located? Most of this equipment has a "Black Box" underneath the wheelhouse. Do you know where they are?
• Do you understand tow characteristics; how much distance is needed to stop the tow in an emergency? Is there anything special about the barges that would change the maneuvering ability of the tow?

Engine Rooms and systems:

Are all familiar with and are able to identify all parts of the engine room? Can all crewmembers operate all the systems onboard?

• If I pointed out a valve beneath the floor plates, could all onboard quickly identify the system and the function?
• Are all familiar with bilge operations. Trying to learn the valve lineup for the bilge when the water is rising above the floor plates is just not a good time!
• There are many other fine points of an engine room operation that has become more sophisticated over the years and requires our understanding.
• Do all know how to operate the fire fighting systems?

Get out the manuals:

Most of pieces equipment of critical equipment have operations manuals on board. Are these manuals available for all to consult? They may not be the most exciting reading but they serve the purpose of getting you knowledgeable in the operation of your vessel.

Don't be left behind as technology continues to change year to year in the maritime world.

Every boat has good ideas 

Good ideas need to be shared, refined and become "Best Practices." A "Best Practice" is defined as a method or technique which shows results superior to those achieved with other means, and is used as a benchmark.  In addition, a "Best Practice" can evolve to become better as improvements are discovered. 

This column is dedicated to sharing the best practices developed while operating your tow.  Each issue we will outline a "Best Practice" sent in by the fleet.  Share your "Best Practice" by sending to Gordie.

This week's "Best Practice" is sent in by the crew of the M/V CAPTAIN JACK HIGMAN

 

A real life drill

 

A prepared crew can take a potential incident and turn it into a real time drill as long as the crew has properly trained beforehand.

 

Case in point:

The crew of the M/V CAPTAIN JACK HIGMAN, in preparation to load a high H2S cargo, went through respiratory protection training prior to docking. The training included demonstration and discussion of the precautions needed to be taken before this type of loading.

 

The tow went to the dock and successfully loaded the cargo. Upon completion of the transfer, a cargo inspector without the crew's knowledge came aboard the barges and opened a vent stack that was closest to boat. The crew quickly reacted to the smell and was instructed to don escape packs , fire up engines and move boat to safe location .

 

After the incident, the inspector was instructed to notify crew prior to opening vent stacks.

 

The incident made for an excellent real life drill to see how the crew reacted in a real life situation. I am proud the say the crew did an excellent job!

 

Afterwards we held a safety briefing to go over what happened and to look for any improvements needed to be made in the future.

 

Submitted by Capt John Gonzales

 

 

ONLY a licensed officer can operate the Vessel

 

 

Per 46 CFR 15.610 every towing vessel of at least 26 feet in length MUST be under the direction and control of a person holding a license as a Master or Mate (pilot) of towing vessels!

 

46 CFR 15.401 also states that an individual may not serve in a position in which an individual is required by law or regulation to hold a license, unless the individual holds all credentials required.

 

These rules prohibit any tankerman from taking control of a towing vessel!  Should a tankerman be involved in a marine accident both the Officer on Watch and the Tankerman could have penalties brought against them.

 

  

John Stults at the sticks on the M/V Annapolis.    By Ryan Harrison

 

USCG Navigation Problems

Which of the following statements are TRUE?

a. Oil well structures are listed in the Light List.
b. All aids to navigation with lights have lateral significance.
c. On the Western Rivers, crossing marks may exhibit white lights.
d. None of the above.

In high water conditions, which publication would you consult for the latest information on buoys between Baton Rouge and Cairo?

a. List of Buoys and Daymarks
b. Coast Pilot
c. Army Corps. of Engineers Navigation Chart
d. U.S.C.G. Local Notice to Mariners

Entering a harbor, you take a bearing on a range and get 338° per gyrocompass (pgc). The true bearing from the chart is 340°T. Variation for the area is 14°E. Your course is 329° per standard magnetic compass (psc) and 338°pgc. The deviation on this heading is __________.

a. 3°E
b. 3°W
c. 5°E
d. 5°W

Which company does NOT have a marine facility in Rosedale harbor (mile 585 AHP)?

a. Sanders Elevator Corp
b. Rosedale-Boliver County Port Commission
c. T.L. James
d. Cives Steel Company

At 0119, on 10 September, you pass Springfield Bend Lt. (mile 244.8 AHP) and estimate the current will average 2.5 mph for the remainder of your trip. What is your ETA at the mouth of the Ohio River if you are making turns for 8.5 mph?

a. 1746, 12 September
b. 1244, 13 September
c. 1244, 14 September
d. 2329, 14 September

Stern Shots  

~~ Brand new M/V Clifford L. Carraway ~~   Congratulations, Cliff, on your namesake vessel!

Captain David Carriere pauses a moment while the vessel is outfitted.  Congrats, Captain, on assignment to this newest Higman boat!

Jose Alvarez and Luke Lisenby work together placing supplies in the proper storage area.

Here's David Leahy taking a stretch before going back to work to finish outfitting the new vessel.

Nautical Trivia

Warnings of the Great Storm of 1900 - Galveston

A series of thunderstorms pop-up off the West Africa coast and tracking begins for the next possible tropical system. In September, the frequency of these events is normally the highest for the year and all eyes watch for storm formation. The National Weather Service has developed a well tuned system to keep us informed on the storms activity and predicted tracks. Today we can follow a storms progression up to the hour with access to many different media sources.

 But what about 113 years ago when on September 8, 1900, the nation's most deadly storm hit Galveston Island? Were residents aware that a massive category 4 hurricane was tracking toward their low laying island?

The Great Storm of 1900 came ashore on a Saturday evening bringing with it a storm surge that flooded most of Galveston Island and the city of Galveston. Almost every structure on the island was destroyed or severely damaged. It was estimated that over 6,000 residents were lost.

The National Weather Service was in its early days, having been authorized by Congress in 1870. Methods of forecasting still depended on local observation and there was little ability to forecast much into the future.

Early that morning on September 8th, the first indication of the storm was a high tide that ran into the low laying areas of the city. The sky was relatively clear in the morning and storm level winds began about 1pm.

The Galveston Daily News was published that morning with little indication of a severe weather event on the horizon. There is a article on page two about a hurricane hitting Miami on Wednesday of that week causing only minor damage. The article describes the storm's previous path through Jamaica and Cuba. Two vessel crews were lost when their boats were driven ashore thirty mile south of Miami. Without a means to predict a storm path, Galveston residents had no idea that they were next in line.

Also in this edition of the paper on page five, is a small entry from Orange, Texas written on the previous day talks about high tides and the possibility of a storm:

"There was a high tide here today with sharp wind that came in puffs and after having read The News dispatches from Key West, many predicted a storm, but late this evening it calmed down and the tide subsided"

Not much information for the residents to go by!

Let them know what you know....

Two weeks ago I sailed a race with a fill-in crew.  Much of the regular crew that competes with us were gone for the summer....Texas A&M sailing team members who happened to be away on their summer cruise.

The owner of the boat recruited some new folks to fill in the needed spots.  They talked a good game but in the heat of action it was obvious they were not quite as experienced as they said they were.  During some critical action, I let out some choice four letter words while trying to keep control over a very large spinnaker.

Lesson learned....if they had been open about their real sailing experience, we could have prevented problems and worked around their lack of expirience. 

it is always best to be honest about what you know and what you don't know!

GORDIE KEENAN
KELLY CLEAVER

JANIS ANDERSON