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Three Out of Ten Ships Involved in Maritime Accidents Experienced Them Repeatedly: Prechecks and Life Jackets Are Essential for Safe Fishing Operations

WriterMaritime Transportation Policy Office
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Date2026-06-29 14:08:44
ContentThree Out of Ten Ships Involved in Maritime Accidents Experienced Them Repeatedly: Prechecks and Life Jackets Are Essential for Safe Fishing Operations - KOMSA intensifies its efforts to reduce maritime accidents by focusing on ships repeatedly involved in them - 40.6% of ships frequently suffering from maritime accidents are registered in Jeju Island. KOMSA runs a special period to prevent maritime accidents on Jeju Island. - From July, it will be mandatory for all seafarers on board to wear life jackets: KOMSA mobilizes all its capacity to conduct a campaign to inform seafarers of how to manage life jackets and encourage them to wear this safety gear. Maritime accident statistics used in this article are the result of KOMSA’s independent analysis using the Maritime Transportation Safety Information System (MTIS), whose operation was entrusted by the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries (MOF) to the Korea Maritime Transportation Safety Authority (KOMSA), based on the statistics of the Korea Maritime Safety Tribunal (KMST) of MOF. <Summary> • Three out of ten ships involved in maritime accidents have them repeatedly, increasing the importance of carrying out checks in advance. o Over the past five years (2021-2025), the national average of the share of ships suffering from maritime accidents continuously, among those involved in these accidents, was 27%. * This is the result of KOMSA’s independent analysis using the “2025 maritime accident statistics” released by KMST. o The share of ships that experienced recurring maritime accidents among those registered in Jeju Island was 40.6%, about 1.5 times the national average. - The number of maritime accident cases involving Jeju Island-registered ships was 428 last year, a 44.1% increase year on year. o KOMSA launches a special period to prevent maritime accidents on Jeju Island from June to July. - Considering changes in the fishing operation environment, such as climate, the institution focuses on managing ships where accidents happen repeatedly, carrying out examinations to see if there is any damage to ship engines through joint efforts between the public and the private. • Ship management alone is not enough to prevent maritime accidents. To this end, reducing safety accidents is needed as they cause heavy casualties. o Over the past five years (2021-2025), among a total of 614 casualties including deaths and missing persons from maritime accidents, 59.8% or 367 casualties were caused by safety accidents. * Safety accidents are those resulting in deaths and missing persons or injuries due to causes unrelated to collision, capsizing, and sinking (an excerpt from the definition of the “type of maritime accidents” in maritime accident statistics released by KMST). o The main culprits are accidents during work, including falling overboard and struck-by accidents, such as being struck by ropes. o In particular, rapidly changing weather conditions and working environment are raising the risk for safety accidents, such as falling overboard. • As life jackets are a last resort at the time of an accident, KOMSA runs an intensive PR campaign about how to wear and manage this safety gear. o It will be mandatory from July for all onboard crew members to wear life jackets on the exposed part of a fishing vessel deck. o KOMSA expands a campaign and on-site education on life jacket use in ports and harbors all over the country. o The institution distributes the translated version of “Safety Accident Prevention Manuals for General Ships and Fishing Vessels” in four foreign languages. On June 5, the Korea Maritime Transportation Safety Authority (KOMSA, President Young-Cheul Ahn) announced that the institution intensified its activities to reduce maritime accidents by focusing on the management of ships experiencing these accidents repeatedly, preventing safety accidents, and promoting a culture of life jacket use. According to the institution’s independent analysis results, the national average of the share of ships having recurring maritime accidents, among those involved in these accidents, was 27% over the past five years (2021-2025). * This is the result of KOMSA’s independent analysis using the “2025 Maritime Accident Statistics” released by KMST. In particular, the share of ships experiencing recurring accidents was higher in ships registered in Jeju Island than in those registered in other regions. In the past five years, the figure was 40.6% for ships registered on the Island, which was about 1.5 times the national average. The number of maritime accident cases involving Jeju Island-registered ships was 428 last year, a 44.1% increase compared to the previous year of 297. An employee of KOMSA said, “As the fishing operation environment is rapidly changing due to climate change, risk factors at sea are also increasing in a complex way. It has become more important to check and manage ships with a history of accidents in advance. Therefore, the institution designated the period from June 1 to July 31 as the “special period of reinforcing efforts to prevent maritime accidents in the Jeju region” and conducted safety inspections focused on ships registered in the region, which have a history of recurring accidents. In particular, KOMSA is strengthening its inspections for prevention together with specialized maintenance companies in order to prevent accidents caused by engine damage that occur repeatedly. In addition, it provides safety equipment on the ground and education about safety guidelines for onboard operations. However, some pointed out that there are limits to decreasing maritime accidents just by focusing on ship management. In the recent five years (2021-2025), out of a total 614 people who died or went missing, 367 of them or 59.8% experienced these tragedies because of safety accidents during fishing operations, including falling overboard and struck-by accidents*. * The “2025 maritime accident statistics" of KMST. ** Safety accidents are those resulting in deaths and missing persons or injuries due to causes unrelated to collision, capsizing, and sinking (an excerpt from the definition of the “type of maritime accidents” in maritime accident statistics released by KMST). Particularly, falling overboard accidents could lead to heavy casualties when they coincide with rapidly changing weather conditions, longer fishing operation distances, and rough seas. This is why wearing life jackets that prevent casualties at the time of an accident is emphasized. In fact, in March, a captain who fell overboard due to a collision between fishing vessels in waters off Tongyeong, Gyeongsangnam-do, survived as he wore a life jacket. In April, a seafarer who fell overboard after his leg was entangled in a rope during fishing operations was also wearing a life jacket when he was safely rescued. Notably, wearing a life jacket on the exposed part of a fishing vessel deck will be mandatory for all onboard crew members from July 1. In response, KOMSA informs people of mandatory life jacket use in nationwide ports and harbors and fishing communities and expands an on-site campaign about the rule. They are also reinforcing safety education by linking it with ship surveys. How to manage “inflatable life jackets – which are recommended as they guarantee mobility during fishing operations – is important. For their proper management, it is essential to carry out periodic checks on the expiration date of the cartridge; the existence of damage to the bladder* and the oral inflation tube; and whether the manual pull tab is outside the protecting clothes. * The inflatable bladder provides buoyancy as it is filled with carbon dioxide when inflated. On fishing vessels, inflatable life jackets should be stored in designated places, while it is recommended to store them in places where it is easy and quick to take them out; well-ventilated and shady places; and places away from direct sunlight and seawater. KOMSA also produces and distributes “Safety Accident Prevention Manuals for General Ships and Fishing Vessels,” where real accident cases are included, such as fall overboard, struck-by accidents, and net hauler accidents. For foreign seafarers of fishing vessels, the manuals were translated into four different foreign languages: English, Indonesian, Vietnamese, and Chinese. Young-Cheul Ahn, president of KOMSA, stated, “Although the basic rule of preventing maritime accidents is reducing risk factors in advance, it is also important to properly prepare for unexpected situations, such as changes in weather conditions.” “KOMSA will step up our efforts to make safe working places at sea that can benefit seafarers on the ground by continuously focusing on the management of ships suffering from accidents repeatedly, providing education on safety regulations, and expanding a culture of life jacket use,” he added. The share of ships having recurring accidents among the ships involved in maritime accidents over the past five years The comparison of the number of maritime accident cases in ships registered in Jeju Island over the past two years A promotional poster for the special period of reinforcing efforts to prevent maritime accidents in the Jeju region The current status of the occurrence of deaths and missing persons from safety accidents among maritime accidents over the past five years Types of life jackets A seafarer wearing an inflatable belt pack (left), an inflated belt pack (right) The core components of an inflatable life jacket