CCU door unlatched whilst being lifted from PSV to platform

  • Safety Flash
  • Published on 24 October 2016
  • Generated on 2 April 2026
  • IMCA SF 29/16
  • 1 minute read

The MSF has published a safety alert regarding an incident in which the door on a cargo carrying unit (CCU) unlatched during lifting operations.

What happened?

The incident occurred when an IBC carrier was being stowed on-board a PSV. As with the rest of the cargo, the door had been closed and secured with a tie-wrap prior to shipment. As the container was being lifted across the installation, it was observed that the door handle had unlatched. On opening the IBC carrier, it was identified that the IBC itself had not been secured within the carrier.

CCU

On further investigation, it was determined that the IBC carrier was of inadequate design. There were no securing points within the unit to enable the IBC to be secured and externally there were no buffers to prevent the door handle from being snagged by other cargo. It would have been possible for the IBC to have shifted internally creating sufficient force to open the IBC carrier door, with the result that the IBC may have fallen out during lifting operations from the platform.

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