Inside Ship: Blackouts

Our latest video in our Inside Ship series examines a near-catastrophic blackout involving a fully laden oil tanker that lost power, propulsion and steering in severe weather, coming dangerously close to grounding and causing a major pollution incident. The video explains how the event was not caused by a single failure, but by a chain of weaknesses across equipment design, operating procedures, monitoring systems, alarm management, redundancy, and emergency preparedness. It highlights an important lesson for ship operators and crews: small, seemingly manageable technical issues can align in unexpected ways and defeat multiple safety barriers at once, reinforcing the need for robust risk assessment, trusted systems, clear operating margins, and realistic worst-case training. 

For further insight into the wider liability implications of modern engine room operations, read our recent article: https://www.ukpandi.com/news-and-resources/news/article/from-machinery-to-liability-navigating-the-complexities-of-the-modern-engine-room/

Watch the video