(CMR) On Thursday night, an equipment fire broke out at the Cayman Islands Port Authority, resulting in another incident that highlights the CIPA's ongoing safety concerns. This is the latest in a long list of safety incidents in the past several years that have led the port management to instruct staff to cover up reports so they are not leaked to the media.
The cause of the fire is likely poor equipment maintenance. CMR has exclusively heard that one of the large head handlers ruptured the hydraulic hose. The operator is accused of not paying close attention to his gauges, which resulted in oil being spewed all over the dock and engine compartment. When it got on the exhaust, it caught the machine on fire.
CMR understands that the hydraulic fluid is all over the dock, including the area where taxis park. One safety-conscious observer noted that it should have been obvious to the operator that the oil was getting on the hot exhaust. This left them to opine as to why they would have continued to run the equipment until it ignited.
Several months ago, the operators didn't tighten the bung properly on another of the other machines, flooding the dock with oil and causing some very expensive repairs. This is the second machine that is now inoperable on the dock.
Several reports of accidents resulting in injuries, lawsuits, and broken equipment have led safety experts to express concern over the port's operations. CMR has reported multiple instances in the past four years of failing equipment, ill-fated decisions, and management's and the board's refusal to take any meaningful actions to address these issues.
The safety manager, Julian Jacky, is being criticized for not doing his job properly. It was recently revealed that he permitted staff to go more than three years without basic CPR/First Aid and AED training. According to FOI documentation, the last training occurred in March 2021, which means that no one at the port is currently certified, as there is a two-year recertification requirement.
Although he is a certified trainer, the port management outsourced the staff training when it was finally done. In addition, operational and safety procedures remain woefully outdated and are said not to be given priority.
Oil spill equipment provided by the UK remains unused because staff lack the necessary competencies to use it. The required ongoing oil spill training and drills have not occurred in years. The safety manager is also responsible for these.
The fleet manager, Bryce Webb, is said to be responsible for the equipment at the port. Despite being in the position for over a year now, concerns remain that equipment maintenance is not being properly conducted, causing downtime and potential staff injuries. CMR previously reported that aged equipment was rusted and at the end of its life, and many pieces were constantly out of commission because of faulty parts and overuse.
One Rubber Tire Gantry crane used to handle the containers at the CDC, along with two large container handling machines, are at the port. One of those is a head handler, and the other is a large blade forklift. Sources revealed that they have postponed changing out a part on the 4100 crane that will see that crane inoperable for a couple of days while they do that.
They have also neglected to change a set of tracks on the M250 crane. One set was changed years ago and they were scheduled to do the other set, but never did.
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