Load/underload

[j.sabourn]

Ref. Post 3 with reference to the Fremantle Dockers, for those not aware they are an Australian Football team recently beaten for the cup. Cheers John Sabourn

[j.sabourn]

Containers/Pilferage.. As when working out of Montreal we carried containers sometimes in the lower hold. This did not stop the wharfies from breaking into. On observing a container door open in the lower hold, I was about to go down to close when I was stopped by whom I considered a wharfie not to go down. I was told later that the wharfie was an undercover Mountie, and they had numerous police officers under cover working on the docks, they were in some cases under cover for years and had a good grip on the smuggling of drugs etc. this was way back in 68 so ones at that time will now be a long time gone. I don't think containerization stopped pilferage by any means, just made it a bit harder for the real villains, and is now of great assist in some cases for the carriage of drugs etc. John Sabourn

[John Arton]

Just a couple of points
As Kieth says chemical leakage leading to fire or toxic release is a nightmare at sea as evidenced by a number of recent incidents. Fires caused by chemical leakage should not occur as materials that can react with each other to form dangerous gases and/or fire cannot be stowed within the same container (IMDG code) but there are obviously unscrupulous people who do this.
Pilferage, now they just hijack the whole container whilst it is in the road transport section of its journey.
The PLA soon discovered that containers were dead easy to break into as in the early days they used to park the containers awaiting shipment tight up against the boundary fences of the parking lot. A quick snip with some bolt cutters and you were through the fence, a quick cut with some decent tin snips and you were into the container that was handily parked next to the road where you could easily make your get away.
Drug trafficking is a major problem as is human trafficking. We once found 20 Rumanians stuffed into a full container that we were about to load in Antwerp (bound for Canada). Unfortunately 5 were dead and the rest suffering from dehydration and lack of oxygen.
Regarding weights, do the underweight/overweight balance out--probably not. The container holding the helicopter blades will most likely have its correct weight declared and there would be little advantage gained from under declaring a lightly loaded container. It is the heavily loaded containers that cause the greatest problems especially when the true weight is undeclared. Overweight containers, apart from the obvious problems of stresses on the vessel, can lead to stack weights being excessive, leading to collapse of the stack. This occurred on a U.K. feeder ship some years ago where the deck stow collapsed due to overweight containers and if my memory serves me correctly the Master got the blame!
rgds
JA

[John Arton]

Quick update on container weights.
IMO are going to make it mandatory for all containers to be weighed in terminals prior to being loaded on board. This is going to be included in a SOLAS amendment but don't know when it will be coming into force.

Another container ship is on fire (fire in no2 hold) off Cape Town and is going to be escorted into Table Bay in order that shore side fire fighting teams can assist the ships crew in extinguishing the fire. At present the ship is not in immediate danger according to the Master and they are using CO2 to fight the fire.
So in addition to the weight issue, to me, it is becoming even more important to ensure that the contents of these containers are correctly stowed according to the IMDG regulations and secured inside the containers. Off the top of my head this is at least the 4th instance of fires breaking out in containers on board in the last 4 months and at least two of them having been very serious.
rgds
JA