Maritime News

Are You Safe Working on a Gulf Coast Shrimp Boat?

Posted on Jul 30, 2011

55 Gulf Coast seamen died between 2000 and 2009, according to a recent National Institute For Occupational Safety and Health study. Of those, 29 were thrown overboard and not wearing life jackets. Another 12 were injured on board, often while working the winches used to haul the nets.

Coast Guard officials have brought these facts to their training classes; yet many shrimp boaters continue to live and work unaware of how to do so more safely. Only about 500 of the thousands of Gulf Coast fishermen have attended the classes.
One of the main causes of death has been the fact that many workers do not speak English. In an emergency, they tend to grab their cell phones and call family. Unfortunately, family cannot respond as quickly as the Coast Guard. Trainers emphasize the importance of using the radio and educating non-English speakers on how to do this.

U.S. Coast Guard commercial fishing vessel safety examiner Gilbert Gallardo says, "These fishermen think they're made of steel, nothing can happen to them." Unfortunately, as the research proves, this could not be further from the truth.
The maritime lawyers at The Young Firm want to emphasize the importance of maritime safety in all aspects of Gulf Coast offshore work. However, sometimes lack of foresight on the part of boat owners and employers results in injury or even death. In these cases, our attorneys' expertise has helped many victims of negligence. Call them with questions TOLL FREE at (866) 938-6113.