MARINA joins int'l meet on marine casualty probes

MANILA – The Maritime Industry Authority (MARINA) has joined other countries in pooling their knowledge to improve safety investigations on marine casualties in a workshop in Busan, South Korea.

In a statement on Friday, the agency said the 2024 International Workshop on the Safety Investigation of Marine Casualty (IWSIMC) was attended by over 100 marine safety investigators from various districts of South Korea as well as maritime experts and international delegates.

"MARINA's participation aligns with the Philippines' international commitment as a flag administration and supports the implementation of the Maritime Industry Development Plan (MIDP), aiming for a safer and more secure maritime industry," it said.

The workshop aimed to enhance knowledge sharing and collaboration among safety investigators.

"It also served as a networking platform to foster better cooperation for improving maritime safety through effective safety investigations," it said.

In particular, the latest IWSIMC focused on investigating ship foundering and fires on ships carrying electric vehicles (EV).

These include emphasizing the importance of crew interviews and scientific methods in formulating recommendations for foundering cases.

In addition, the event tackled how recent EV fire incidents necessitate more discussions on the adequacy of current safety regulations in preventing and combatting such fires.

Enforcement Service Director Ronaldo Bandalaria represented MARINA as a resource speaker for the event on June 27.

During the event, Bandalaria also collaborated with the Busan Port Authority, the Korea Institute of Maritime and Fisheries Technology, and the Korea Marine Safety Tribunal. (PNA)