The global commercial fishing industry, which employs approximately 159,800 seafarers worldwide (as reported by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations), faces a significant challenge in terms of safety. According to estimates by the International Labour Organization, approximately 24,000 seafarers lose their lives each year in fishing-related accidents. However, most existing guidelines for preventing maritime accidents primarily target vessels involved in international navigation, often inadequately addressing the unique risks faced by small-scale boats operating in coastal areas. This study focuses on trap fishery, a widely practiced fishing method globally, analyzing quantitative data from 1790 maritime accidents and conducting a survey involving 101 seafarers in South Korea. Utilizing Bayesian network analysis, aligned with Formal Safety Assessment protocols, the authors developed preventive guidelines aiming to reduce the rate of fatal accidents. The guidelines, derived from the data analysis, are anticipated to provide invaluable assistance to seafarers engaged in trap fishery not only in South Korea but also across various countries worldwide. By enhancing safety measures in this critical sector, this research will contribute to the overarching goal of sustainability within the global commercial fishing industry.

Fishing vessels are known to have a fatality rate from accidents nearly 100 times higher than that of merchant ships. However, since most cases are resolved internally without maritime tribunals, obtaining accurate statistics on accidents is challenging, making quantitative analysis and evaluation of accident risks difficult. Studies using inconsistent analytical methods often fail to converge on unified results or preventive measures, which contributes to the persistently high occurrence of fishing vessel accidents. Therefore, this study aimed to establish a standardized method for analyzing marine accidents on fishing vessels by applying the Formal Safety Assessment (FSA) technique, originally developed for merchant ships. The research focuses on the globally prevalent trap boat fishery, specifically examining common injuries occurring on fishing vessels. Quantitative data were collected from insurance approval records, while qualitative data were obtained through surveys. The research followed the five stages of the FSA framework: hazard identification, risk estimation, identification of risk control options, cost-benefit assessment, and recommendations for decision-making. The findings suggest that the FSA framework can be effectively applied to analyze fishing vessel accidents based on insurance data, leading to selective and effective preventive measures.

With an estimated 32,000 annual fatalities, fishing vessel accidents are 100-fold deadlier than those involving merchant ships. Despite ongoing safety training, accident rates remain high. Since most fishing vessel accidents occur in small fishing vessels (<12 m) and are primarily attributable to human elements, this study focuses on small fishing vessel accidents where the human element is the primary cause, exploring preventive measures for major accident types and performing a type-specific risk assessment. First, we performed a quantitative analysis of frequently occurring accidents and the indirect factors influencing the human element using maritime accident statistics and surveys, respectively. Next, we employed the fault tree analysis technique proposed by the International Maritime Organization in its Formal Safety Assessment to quantitatively assess the rate of accidents caused by the human element attributable to various indirect factors. The primary indirect factors most significantly impacting the human element were ship factors (22.8%), people factors (18.9%), and organization on board (17.4%). Secondary factors included personal negligence (14.1%), aging equipment and poor maintenance (10.3%), and harsh natural conditions such as rough waves (9.6%). Eliminating the top three secondary indirect factors reduced accidents due to the human element by 15.4% (64.5−49.1%).

The Marine Stewardship Council estimates that approximately 38 million people worldwide work in fisheries, and more than one-third of the global population is dependent on aquatic products for protein, highlighting the importance of sustainable fisheries. The FISH Safety Foundation reports that 300 fishers die every day. To achieve sustainable fisheries as a primary industry, the safety of human resources is of the utmost importance. The International Maritime Organization (IMO) and the International Labor Organization (ILO) have made efforts towards this goal, including the issuance of agreements and guidelines to reduce industrial accidents among fishing vessel workers. The criterion for applying these guidelines is usually a total ship length ≥12 m or ≥24 m. However, a vast majority of registered fishing vessels are <12 m long, and the fishers of these vessels suffer substantially more industrial accidents. Thus, we conducted a quantitative analysis of 1093 industrial accidents affecting fishers on fishing vessels <12 m in length, analyzed risk using a Bayesian network analysis (a method proposed by the Formal Safety Assessment of the IMO), and administered a questionnaire survey to a panel of experts in order to ascertain the risk for different types of industrial accidents and propose specific measures to reduce this risk.

The number of fishers working on commercial fishing vessels worldwide is approximately 159,800 according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. The International Labour Organization estimates that the mean annual number of deaths during fishing is approximately 24,000. Most guidelines for the prevention of marine accidents have been developed with a focus on vessels involved in international navigation. As these guidelines may have parts that are unsuitable for application in small-scale boats operating in coastal areas, appropriate modifications are required. This study analyzed quantitative data on 1,790 marine accidents that occurred in trap fishery, a globally common type of fishery, and data obtained through a survey of 101 fishers in South Korea. A guideline to reduce the rate of fatal accidents was developed using the Bayesian network, a method used for the analysis of accidents, as suggested in the formal safety assessment protocol. The results of data analysis and the developed guidelines are expected to be beneficial to all fishers involved in trap fishery across many countries worldwide.

Open-sea fishing vessel accidents are difficult to assess systematically because no state holds exclusive jurisdiction, and reporting and investigative duties are not applied consistently. This study analyzed 67 officially reported accidents from the International Maritime Organization (IMO) Global Integrated Shipping Information System (GISIS) using a bow-tie framework combining fault tree analysis (FTA), Firth logistic regression, event tree analysis (ETA), and quantitative risk assessment (QRA). COLREG violations and watchkeeping failures dominated collisions; overload and stability issues caused capsizes; pump capacity, hull leakage, and vessel aging (≥30 years) caused sinkings. Firth regression confirmed older vessels and high beam-to-length ratios (≥0.30) significantly increased sinking likelihood. ETA and QRA estimated probabilities of 0.522 for collisions, 0.090 for capsizes, and 0.388 for sinkings, with risks of R = 0.155, 0.048, and 0.036. Because open-sea accident data rely on limited and voluntary reporting, results are preliminary. However, the bow-tie framework effectively identifies dominant causal factors and high-severity event pathways in open-sea fishing operations.