Have you heard about ISM?
You probably haven’t. Neither had we until we spoke with Engineer Abdo Abd El Karim, the Director of Marine Inspection Hurghada and Safaga from the Egyptian Authority for Maritime Safety in the Red Sea, who was kind enough to give us an interview.
Mr. Karim told us how important safety and security are to all visitors to the Red Sea and the operators of the safari boats understand that they need to meet these needs. You want to have fun, enjoy the wonders of the Red Sea, see what Egypt has to offer, but you want to know that all possible measures are being taken to ensure your safety during your activities. He described the safety of the boat as being divided into two areas:
Safety of the passengers
Mr. Karim explained that such safety can only be achieved through a safety management model that covers performance of the boat and the crew in both normal and emergency situations. He has been helping the boat owners to find ways to implement such a model. Boat owners are keen to co-operate because they understand that such a policy in increases the level of service they are able to offer and enhances their business.
The safe management practices that are being adopted are taken from the global International Safety Management (ISM) code.
The objectives of the ISM Code are “to ensure safety at sea, prevention of human injury or loss of life, and avoidance of damage to the environment, in particular, to the marine environment, and to property”.
The areas covered by ISM are:
Safe working practices
Risk Management
Environmental risk management
Continuing education of staff and crew
Adherence to rules and regulations
Proper maintenance of the ship and equipment
The code also calls for all on-board staff to be qualified for their role, certificated and medically fit.
Mr. Karim’s department will continue to work with boat owners to help them gain the maximum benefits from adopting this safety management model and to achieve the highest levels of safety for their vessels. It is the aim of Mr. Karim’s department that, in the near future, all boats will conform to the ISM code.
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