Maritime safety as part of and overlapping with

water safety Water safety refers to the procedures, precautions and policies associated with safety in, on, and around bodies of water, where there is a risk of injury or drowning. It has applications in several occupations, sports and recreational activities. ...

is concerned with the protection of life (

search and rescue Search and rescue (SAR) is the search for and provision of aid to people who are in distress or imminent danger. The general field of search and rescue includes many specialty sub-fields, typically determined by the type of terrain the search ...

) and

property Property is a system of rights that gives people legal control of valuable things, and also refers to the valuable things themselves. Depending on the nature of the property, an owner of property may have the right to consume, alter, share, r ...

through regulation, management and technology development of all forms of waterborne transportation. The executive institutions are the national and transnational maritime administrations. Maritime accidents, while characterized by a level of

safety Safety is the state of being "safe", the condition of being protected from harm or other danger. Safety can also refer to risk management, the control of recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk. Meanings There are ...

of the order of 10⁻⁵ (1 serious accident per 100,000 movements), which is only slightly inferior to that of the field of

air transportation Aviation includes the activities surrounding mechanical flight and the aircraft industry. ''Aircraft'' includes fixed-wing and rotary-wing types, morphable wings, wing-less lifting bodies, as well as lighter-than-air craft such as hot air ...

(10⁻⁶) are a significant source of

risk In simple terms, risk is the possibility of something bad happening. Risk involves uncertainty about the effects/implications of an activity with respect to something that humans value (such as health, well-being, wealth, property or the environme ...

for

insurance companies Insurance is a means of protection from financial loss in which, in exchange for a fee, a party agrees to compensate another party in the event of a certain loss, damage, or injury. It is a form of risk management, primarily used to hedge ...

, transport companies and property owners. Beyond that, of course, ship owners and maritime institutions have to ensure that casualties at sea (mostly by

drowning Drowning is a type of suffocation induced by the submersion of the mouth and nose in a liquid. Most instances of fatal drowning occur alone or in situations where others present are either unaware of the victim's situation or unable to offer a ...

) are kept to the possible minimum. Organizational and human factors are critical antecedents to accidents such as

MV Prestige MV ''Prestige'' was an oil tanker owned by a Greek company based in Athens and operating under a Bahamian flag, that on 19 November 2002 sank off the coast of Galicia, Spain. The sinking caused a major environmental disaster, polluting thous ...

Herald of Free Enterprise MS ''Herald of Free Enterprise'' was a roll-on/roll-off (RORO) ferry which capsized moments after leaving the Belgian port of Zeebrugge on the night of 6 March 1987, killing 193 passengers and crew. The eight-deck car and passenger ferry was ow ...

, MS Sleipner,

MS Estonia MS ''Estonia'' was a cruiseferry built in 1980 at the West German shipyard Meyer Werft in Papenburg. In 1993, she was sold to Nordström & Thulin for use on Estline's Tallinn–Stockholm route. The ship's sinking on 28 September 1994, in the B ...

Bow Mariner Bow often refers to: * Bow and arrow, a weapon * Bowing, bending the upper body as a social gesture * An ornamental knot made of ribbon Bow may also refer to: * Bow (watercraft), the foremost part of a ship or boat * Bow (position), the rowe ...

and Hoegh Osaka as well as the infamous

Titanic RMS ''Titanic'' was a British passenger liner, operated by the White Star Line, which sank in the North Atlantic Ocean on 15 April 1912 after striking an iceberg during her maiden voyage from Southampton, England, to New York City, United ...

Institutions

For a complete list, see :Maritime safety organizations

Europe

European Maritime Safety Agency The European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA) is a European Union agency charged with reducing the risk of maritime accidents, marine pollution from ships and the loss of human lives at sea by helping to enforce the pertinent EU legislation. It is ...

Maritime Gendarmerie The Maritime Gendarmerie (french: Gendarmerie maritime) is a component of the French National Gendarmerie under operational control of the chief of staff of the French Navy. It employs 1,157 personnel and operates around thirty patrol boats and h ...

* Danish Maritime Safety Administration *

Norwegian Maritime Authority The Norwegian Maritime Authority ( no, Sjøfartsdirektoratet) is a Norway, Norwegian government agency responsible for life, health, working conditions and the Natural environment, environment for Norwegian registered ships and ships at Norwegian ...

Maritime Safety and Rescue Society The Sociedad de Salvamento y Seguridad Marítima (literally: ''Maritime Safety and Rescue Society''), also known as SASEMAR or Salvamento Marítimo, is a sea search and rescue agency that operates in Spain. It is the body in charge of maritime ...

Asia

China Maritime Safety Administration The Maritime Safety Administration of the People's Republic of China (CMSA; ) is a government agency which administers all matters related to maritime and shipping safety, including the supervision of maritime traffic safety and security, prevent ...

Africa

South African Maritime Safety Authority The South African Maritime Safety Authority (SAMSA) is a South African government agency established on 1 April 1998 as a result of the 1998 South African Maritime Safety Authority Act 5. as such it is responsible for the implementation of current ...

Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency The Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), formerly the National Maritime Authority (NMA) is responsible for regulations related to Nigerian shipping, maritime labor and coastal waters. The agency also undertakes inspections ...

Americas

United States Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and law enforcement service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the country's eight uniformed services. The service is a maritime, military, mult ...

Systems

Global Maritime Distress and Safety System The Global Maritime Distress and Safety System (GMDSS) is a worldwide system for automated emergency signal communication for ships at sea developed by the United Nations' International Maritime Organization (IMO) as part of the SOLAS Convent ...

Maritime Safety and Security Information System The Maritime Safety & Security Information System (MSSIS) is a freely-shared, unclassified, near real-time data collection and distribution network. Its member countries share data from Automatic Identification System (AIS), coastal radar, and ot ...

References

Literature

* * {{cite book , last=Oltedal , first=Helle , title=Managing maritime safety , publisher=Routledge , publication-place=London , year=2018 , isbn=978-0-203-71297-9 , oclc=1021303983