(www.MaritimeCyprus.com) On 14 October 2025, the bosun on the Isle of Man registered bulk carrier World Prize died when he fell from the main deck while the crew were preparing the pilot ladder following the vessel’s departure from Rönnskär, Sweden. The Swedish pilot boat Pilot 753 SE, operated by the Swedish Maritime Administration, was a short distance away. The pilot boat’s crew attempted to recover the bosun from the water but were unsuccessful. His body was recovered from the seabed the following day.
At 0840 on 14 October 2025, the bosun on the Isle of Man registered bulk carrier World Prize died when he fell from the main deck while the crew were preparing the pilot ladder following the vessel’s departure from Rönnskär, Sweden.
The Swedish pilot boat Pilot 753 SE was a short distance away, waiting to collect two pilots from World Prize. The pilot boat’s crew saw the bosun fall to the water and tried to recover him, but he sank beneath the surface during their attempt. He was recovered from the seabed the following day.
The investigation found that the unsafe procedure used when rigging the pilot ladder had become normalised practice, placing the crew at serious risk of injury. Crew members working near the unguarded deck edge on World Prize were not equipped with the appropriate personal protective equipment to prevent them from falling, arrest any fall, or support them in the water, and Sweden nobody in the vicinity of the pilot ladder acted to interrupt the work. It was also evident that World Prize was not equipped with sufficient handheld radios for use by the crew.
The investigation also identified that permits to work on World Prize were largely completed as a compliance exercise to satisfy oversight requirements, rather than being used as a practical mechanism to manage risk and ensure safe operations.
The deckhand on Pilot 753 SE had not been trained on the new man overboard recovery system on board the boat, reducing the capability of the crew to recover an unconscious person from the water.
Following the accident, the managers of World Prize, Synergy Maritime Private Limited, completed an internal investigation and introduced measures to prevent a recurrence. These included crew training and modifications to provide suitable anchor points for safety harnesses when rigging the pilot embarkation equipment. The pilot ladder davits were reinstated and the deck near the pilot embarkation stations was marked to highlight the fall hazard. World Prize was also provided with personal flotation devices compatible with the safety harnesses carried on board and additional handheld radios for use by the crew. The company also issued a fleetwide safety alert with an accompanying video to emphasise the lessons identified in its investigation.
The operators of Pilot 753 SE, the Swedish Maritime Administration (Sjöfartsverket), removed all the superseded equipment from its vessels and amended its digital training and maintenance management system to include all crew in manoverboard drills.
The Isle of Man Ship Registry published a Manx Shipping Notice to require Isle of Man registered ships to carry the latest version of the UK Code of Safe Working Practices for Merchant Seafarers.
For more details, click below to download the full UK MAIB investigation report:
Source: MAIB
For more maritime investigation reports, click HERE.
