THREE stevedores who died on board a bulk carrier in Indonesia had not received training on the dangers of enclosed spaces, an investigation by the UK’s Marine Accident Investigation Branch has found.

The incident occurred on board Berge Bulk-owned, Isle of Man-flagged, 2015-built, 181,160 dwt Berge Mawson (IMO: 9738868) at the Bunyu Island anchorage, Indonesia, while it was loading 150,000 tonnes of coal on June 27, 2022.

The cargo was loaded from barges and bulldozers were lifted on to the vessel to trim the coal.

After rain had prompted a pause to loading, a bulldozer operator entered cargo hold eight unsupervised and collapsed.

Two more stevedores entered the hold a short time later and they too collapsed. The three men were recovered to the main deck before being taken ashore, where they were pronounced dead.

Testing of the hold revealed depleted oxygen levels and high levels of carbon monoxide.

Investigating on behalf of the Isle of Man flag registry, MAIB found the atmosphere of the cargo holds had not been tested before anyone entered them. Berge Mawson’s enclosed spaces were not secured while the stevedores were working on board, so unauthorised access to the cargo hold access spaces was not prevented.

But crucially, Chief Inspector of Marine Accidents, Andrew Moll, said it was “evident that the stevedores did not have sufficient understanding of the hazards posed by coal cargoes nor, more worryingly, had they received training about the dangers associated with entering enclosed spaces”.

“Although Berge Mawson’s crew were well trained in their emergency response to enclosed space accidents, their drill scenarios did not involve shore workers who could be on board at the time,” he said.

“In the crew’s rush to collect rescue equipment they left the entry point to an enclosed space containing a noxious atmosphere unguarded, and this oversight tragically led to the second and third stevedores dying in a well-intentioned, but misguided attempt to rescue their colleague.”