Maritime safety was the
theme of Maritime Day on
September 27 this year –
marking 100 years since
the sinking of the Titanic
on April 14, 1912.
The Titanic tragedy
prompted major shipping
nations of the world to
take decisive action and
adopt, two years later, the
first ever International
Convention on Safety
of Life at Sea and
ultimately to establish the
International Maritime
Organisation.
“Each new generation
of vessels brings fresh
challenges, reinforcing
the need for continual
improvement.” IMO
secretary general Koji
Sekimizu, said.
“To this end we are
planning a two-day
symposium at IMO
headquarters in London
in conjunction with
IMO’s Maritime Safety
Committee next June on
the future of ship safety,”
he said.
“The idea is to go
beyond the current
safety issues under the
Committee and rigorously
consider the future of
maritime safety. The
objective is for the
discussions to contribute to
the future advancement of
the organisation’s maritime
safety policy,” he said.
Celebrating the day in
Johannesburg last week
were the members of the
TBN Club, a bi-monthly
gathering for those
employed by ship owners,
ship brokers and ships’
agents, conceived by Paul
Clark and Rod Eaton a
decade and a half ago. Its
aim is to promote better
communications and raise
funds for charities like
the National Sea Rescue
Institute and The Missions
to Seafarers.
CAPTION
Rod Eaton of the SA Maritime School and Transport College and Diane
Schmidt of Calulo Shipping Dry Cargo … celebrating Maritime Day.
