Maritime Day puts safety first

Maritime safety was the theme of Maritime Day on September 27 this year – marking 100 years since the sinking of the Titanic on April 14, 1912. The Titanic tragedy prompted major shipping nations of the world to take decisive action and adopt, two years later, the first ever International Convention on Safety of Life at Sea and ultimately to establish the International Maritime Organisation. “Each new generation of vessels brings fresh challenges, reinforcing the need for continual improvement.” IMO secretary general Koji Sekimizu, said. “To this end we are planning a two-day symposium at IMO headquarters in London in conjunction with IMO’s Maritime Safety Committee next June on the future of ship safety,” he said. “The idea is to go beyond the current safety issues under the Committee and rigorously consider the future of maritime safety. The objective is for the discussions to contribute to the future advancement of the organisation’s maritime safety policy,” he said. Celebrating the day in Johannesburg last week were the members of the TBN Club, a bi-monthly gathering for those employed by ship owners, ship brokers and ships’ agents, conceived by Paul Clark and Rod Eaton a decade and a half ago. Its aim is to promote better communications and raise funds for charities like the National Sea Rescue Institute and The Missions to Seafarers. CAPTION Rod Eaton of the SA Maritime School and Transport College and Diane Schmidt of Calulo Shipping Dry Cargo … celebrating Maritime Day.