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Bulletin No.: 08/1997
Date (Y-M-D): 1997-07-04
Subject: Electrical Shock Hazard - Shore Power
A recent near fatality on board a Canadian Registered Vessel resulted when a ship's employee received a 480 volt electrical shock from a shore power system.
The shore power with its source end connected on shore, had its free end lying on the ship's metal deck. The employee picked the plug (male) up and for some reason came into contact with the exposed energized pins.
There were at least two factors which contributed to this incident:
- The employee was attempting to do maintenance on an energized system.
- The design of the shore power system employed a male plug which had the live terminals exposed and accessible.
In view of the above, the Marine Safety Branch advises all vessel operators and maintenance personnel of the following:
- The power supply to any piece of electrical equipment requiring maintenance should be locked in the off position and tagged by a responsible member of the crew.
- It is recommended that in order to afford as much protection to operating personnel as possible, the free end of a cable from a power source should always terminate in a female plug.
Keywords: Questions concerning this bulletin should be addressed to:
2. Shock
3. Protection
4. Female Plug
James Kirby
(613) 998-0599
Marine Safety
Tower C, Place de Ville
11th Floor, 330 Sparks Street
Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0N8
To add or change your address, contact us at: marinesafety@tc.gc.ca
Owners of commercial vessels, registered and licensed, automatically receive Bulletins.
