Reporting of Casualties
Shipping Notice: CISN 03/1998
Published 11th September 1998, 3:08pm
To: Owners, Operators, Managers and Masters of Cayman Registered Vessels
- There have been a number of incidents in recent months where casualties have occurred to Cayman Islands registered vessels and this office has not been informed by either the owner or the master.
- This notice is to remind owners and masters that there is a legal obligation to report casualties to the Director of Shipping as set out in the Merchant Shipping Law of the Cayman Islands. (Law 12 of 1992)
- The nature of the casualties to be reported are as follows:
- the loss or presumed loss, stranding, grounding, abandonment of or damage to a ship; or
- a loss of life or serious personal injury caused by fire on board or by an accident to a ship or ship’s boat , or by an accident occurring on board a ship or ship’s boat.
- any damage caused by a ship.
- Where such a casualty has occurred the owner or master of the ship shall, as soon as practicable, and in any case not later than 24 hours after the arrival of the ship at the next port, report the casualty to the Director of Shipping, giving a brief description of it and stating the time and place where it occurred, the name and official number of the ship, its position at the time of the report and the next port of call.
- If the owner or master of a ship fails without reasonable cause to report such a casualty as outlined in Section 3 above then he shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding ten thousand dollars.
- It should be noted that following such a report the Governor of the Cayman Islands may cause a preliminary inquiry into the casualty to be held by a person appointed for the purpose and whether or not such a preliminary inquiry has been held, may cause a formal investigation with the casualty to be held by a wreck commissioner appointed by the Attorney General.
For further information contact: Corporate Communications