Page 4 - Occupational Health & Safety, September 2018

FROM THE EDITOR
www.ohsonline.com
VOLUME 87 NUMBER 9
EDITORIAL STAFF
EDITOR
E-NEWS EDITOR
ASSOCIATE CONTENT EDITOR
ART STAFF
ART DIRECTOR
PRODUCTION STAFF
PRODUCTION COORDINATOR
SALES STAFF
INTEGRATED MEDIA REPRESENTATIVE-WEST INTEGRATED MEDIA REPRESENTATIVE-EAST
INFRASTRUCTURE SOLUTIONS GROUP
PRESIDENT & GROUP PUBLISHER GROUP CIRCULATION DIRECTOR GROUP MARKETING DIRECTOR GROUP WEBSITE MANAGER GROUP WEBINAR ADMINISTRATOR GROUP SOCIAL MEDIA EDITOR
CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER CHIEF TECHNOLOGY OFFICER
EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT EXECUTIVE CHAIRMAN
REACHING THE STAFF
Jerry Laws Brent Dirks Jessica Davis
Dale Chinn Teresa Antonio
Barbara Blake
972-687-6718
Jenna Conwell
610-436-4372
Kevin O’Grady Irene Fincher Susan May Scott Newhouse Tammy Renne Sydny Shepard
Rajeev Kapur
Craig Rucker Erik A. Lindgren
Michael J. Valenti Jeffrey S. Klein
Editors can be reached via e-mail, fax, telephone, or mail. A list of editors and contact information is at www.ohsonline.com.
Email: To e-mail any member of the staff please use the following form: FirstinitialLastname@1105media.com.
Dallas Office: (weekdays, 8:30 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. CT) Telephone: 972-687-6700; Fax: 972-687-6799 14901 Quorum Drive, Suite 425, Dallas, TX 75254
Corporate Office: (weekdays, 8:30 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. PT) Telephone: 818-814-5200; Fax: 818-734-1522
6300 Canoga Avenue, Suite 1150, Woodland Hills, CA 91367
www.ohsonline.com
HPark the Ducks—Permanently
ot Springs, Ark. Seattle. Philadelphia. Liverpool, Eng- land. London, England. Branson, Mo. The common element among these cities: duck boat sinkings or fires during the past 19 years.
The deaths of 17 people aboard a duck boat during a severe storm July 19 on Table Rock Lake in Branson should not have happened. While the probable cause of this latest duck boat trag- edy was undetermined at press time for this issue, we know the amphibious passenger vehicle had a canopy and sank very quick- ly. According to one survivor, it entered the lake while operators should have known the area was under a severe thunderstorm warning. She said none of the passengers was wearing a life jacket when the vehicle went down, predicting that divers and investiga- tors would find all of the life jackets still on board.
Duck boats are surplus, converted World War II U.S. military vehicles. They have been involved in a number of serious or fatal accidents on land, as well. But on the water—their amphibious capability makes them popular tourist attractions in a number of U.S. cities—they’re “death traps,” a Philadelphia lawyer involved in two duck boat fatality cases told the Associated Press.
It’s hard to disagree. In April 2002, the National Transportation Safety Board’s report1 on the Hot Springs sinking in May 1999 showed that the Miss Majestic had no watertight bulk- heads, no reserve buoyancy, and its canopy was a major impediment to the passengers’ surviv- al. (This sinking killed 13 people ranging in age from 3 to 50, and the vehicle’s life jackets were still stowed in racks above the seats when it was salvaged.) The tour operator’s maintenance program was inadequate and the Coast Guard’s inspection program for the vehicle was “inad- equate and cursory,” according to the board. “On amphibious passenger vehicles that cannot remain afloat when flooded, canopies can represent an unacceptable risk to passenger safety,” NTSB’s report said. Inadequate maintenance of the vehicle was the cause of the sinking, with lack of reserve buoyancy and inadequate Coast Guard oversight contributing.
Almost 20 years apart, the Branson and Hot Springs sinkings are eerily similar. At this point, the Branson tragedy shows the peril of failing to implement safety recommendations from past accidents. It is clear these vehicles should not be in passenger service.
JERRY LAWS
jlaws@1105media.com
REFERENCES
1. https://www.ntsb.gov/investigations/AccidentReports/Reports/MAR0201.pdf
“On amphibious passenger vehicles that cannot remain afloat when flooded, canopies can repre- sent an unacceptable risk to passenger safety,” NTSB’s 2002 report said.
ID STATEMENT
Occupational Health & Safety (ISSN 0362-4064) is pub- lished monthly by 1105 Media, Inc., 6300 Canoga Avenue, Suite 1150, Woodland Hills, CA 91367. Periodicals postage paid at Woodland Hills, CA 91367, and at additional mailing offices. Complimentary subscriptions are sent to qualifying subscribers. Annual subscription rates payable in U.S. funds for non-qualified subscribers are: U.S. $79.00, International $149.00. Subscription inquiries, back issue requests, and address changes: Mail to: Occupational Health & Safety, P.O. Box 2166 , Skokie, IL 60076-7866, email OHSmag@1105service.com or call 866-293-3194
or 847-513-6011 for U.S. & Canada; 00-1-847-513-6011 for International, fax 847-763-9564. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Occupational Health & Safety, P.O. Box 2166, Skokie, IL 60076-7866. Canada Publications Mail Agreement No: 40612608. Return Undeliverable Canadian Addresses to Circulation Dept. or XPO Returns: P.O. Box 201, Richmond Hill, ON L4B 4R5, Canada.
COPYRIGHT STATEMENT
© Copyright 2018 by 1105 Media, Inc. All rights reserved. Printed in the U.S.A. Reproductions in whole or part prohibited except by written permission. Mail requests to “Permissions Editor,” c/o Occupational Health & Safety, 14901 Quorum Dr, Ste. 425, Dallas, TX 75254.
LEGAL DISCLAIMER
The information in this magazine has not undergone any formal testing by 1105 Media, Inc. and is distributed without any warranty expressed or implied. Implementation or use of any information contained herein is the reader’s sole responsibility. While the information has been reviewed for accuracy, there is no guarantee that the same or similar results may be achieved in all environments. Technical inaccuracies may result from printing errors and/or new developments in the industry.
CORPORATE ADDRESS
Corporate Headquarters:
1105 Media
6300 Canoga Avenue, Suite 1150, Woodland Hills, CA 91367 www.1105media.com
MEDIA KITS
Media Kits: Direct your Media Kit requests to
Lynda Brown, 972-687-6710 (phone), 972-687-6750 (fax), lbrown@1105media.com
REPRINTS
Reprints: For single article reprints (in minimum quantities of 250-500), e-prints, plaques and posters contact:
PARS International
Phone: 212-221-9595
E-mail: 1105reprints@parsintl.com www.1105Reprints.com
LIST RENTAL
This publication’s subscriber list, as well as other lists from 1105 Media, Inc., is available for rental. For more informa- tion, please contact our list manager, Jane Long, Merit Direct. Phone: (913) 685-1301; Email: jlong@meritdirect. com; Web: www.meritdirect.com/1105
4 Occupational Health & Safety | SEPTEMBER 2018