All maritime jobs are risky, but engineers work with equipment and machinery that can cause serious accidents and injuries. If you were injured working as a maritime engineer, contact a lawyer to help you seek compensation.
What Do Maritime Engineers Do?
Engineers on ships maintain the internal systems, machinery and equipment of vessels, ensuring it all works and that vessels can operate. They work on vessel crews at sea and in shipyards while vessels are docked or in dry dock. Some engineers work on offshore installations.
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Large ships often have a chief engineer and assistants. Engineers are also often involved in the design and building of vessel systems. Some of the specific duties of maritime engineers include:
- Monitoring and maintaining mechanical, electrical, and propulsion systems
- Repairing systems when they fail
- Ensuring compliance with safety, environmental, and other regulations
- Conducting tests of systems and equipment
- Inspecting and evaluating systems and equipment
- Documenting maintenance and repairs and filing reports as needed
Why Is Maritime Engineer Work Dangerous?
All maritime workers, both on vessels and in shipyards, face certain risks and hazards on the job. Engineers on ships at sea or docked face specific dangers. Maritime engineers work with complicated machinery and equipment that can cause injuries when mishandled or when not operating correctly.
Engineers often work in cramped or confined spaces and in areas with a lot of machinery that can cause trips or falls. Machinery parts can move and strike workers in the vicinity.
They also face other more general risks associated with working on a ship, offshore rig, or platform. These include bad weather, rough waters, shifting cargo, fires and explosions, collisions, grounding, and other incidents that can injure anyone on board.
What Kinds of Injuries Do Maritime Engineers Suffer?
Maritime engineers may be injured in several ways, depending on the specific work they are doing. Some examples of injuries maritime may suffer on the job include:
- Sprains, strains, and fractures
- Crush injuries
- Head injuries
- Spine and back injuries
- Burns
- Electrocution injuries
- Injuries related to exposure to toxic materials
Depending on the severity of the incident and injuries, some accidents involving engineers are fatal.
What Causes Maritime Engineer Accidents and Injuries?
There are many potential causes of injuries in engineers on vessels or offshore installations. Some accidents occur despite good work practices and could not have been prevented. In other cases, negligence and preventable factors cause accidents that injure engineers:
- Failure to follow procedures and safety protocols
- Inadequate training
- Poor communication between workers
- Poorly maintained or repaired equipment
- Equipment or cargo that has not been correctly secured
- Lack of safety equipment or training
- Inadequate lighting
- Trip and fall hazards
Examples of Engineer Accidents and Injuries
Real examples of engineers injured on the job illustrate how easily these workers can be victims of accidents.
Severe Burns
A few different, preventable factors caused an engineer’s severe burns on a bulk carrier in 2020. He opened an inspection plug on a sludge discharge line for a fuel oil separator. Hot sludge from the line came into contact with the engineer’s legs and arms, resulting in mixed partial thickness burns on 12% of his body.
The engineer failed to detect the risk of hot sludge in the line and opened the inspection plug too soon after the separator had been turned off. He also failed to follow safety rules. The engineer should have been accompanied by another worker and should have been wearing appropriate safety gear. He was in shorts, which caused the sludge to come in direct contact with his skin.
Face and Arm Injuries
An engineer working on a ship’s elevator suffered injuries to the arm and face after failing to follow protocols. The engineer and an oiler were doing routine maintenance on the elevator when the accident happened. Other crew members radioed to ask if they could use the elevator, and the engineer said yes. He directed the oiler to switch on the elevator’s breaker.
The turning handle was still in the gearbox, so when the crew activated the elevator, it turned and struck the engineer. Failing to remove the handle was an easy mistake to make but could have been prevented if he had strictly followed protocols.
Bruising and Back Injury
An engineer on a ship suffered injuries after falling on his way to replenish compressor oil. The engineer descended a ladder with a can of compressor oil in one hand and used the other to hold onto the ladder railing.
The engineer slipped on the fourth step down and fell 15 steps to the bottom. Because he only had one hand free, he was unable to stop his fall. He should have used a safer way to carry the oil can. He was wearing a safety helmet, which likely prevented a more severe head injury.
How to Seek Compensation After a Maritime Engineering Accident
Maritime engineers are protected by maritime laws that allow injured workers to seek compensation. Compensation is essential for paying medical bills and making up for lost wages.
If you work as an engineer in the maritime industry and get hurt on the job, contact a maritime lawyer. They understand the complex laws governing maritime workplaces and give you the best chance of successfully recovering damages.
If someone else’s negligence caused your injuries, you may be eligible to sue for damages under the Jones Act. You may be entitled to workers’ compensation. The type of claim you make, or if you should file a lawsuit, depends on several factors, including where you work. A maritime lawyer can evaluate your case and help you decide what steps to take.