‘Working hours at sea must be better enforced’

The report into the Tit Bonhomme trawler tragedy will recommend better enforcement of EU regulations governing working hours for fishermen.

Improved policing of the 2003 EU Working Time Directive, which sets down specific working hours and break-time rules for sea fishing workers, is one of several safety recommendations expected to issue when the Marine Casualty Investigation Board (MCIB) publishes its report on Monday.

The report cites crew fatigue, inadequate watch-keeping arrangements, and the crew’s unfamiliarity with onboard emergency drills as contributory factors in the sinking of the vessel at the mouth of Glandore Harbour in Jan 2012, with the loss of five lives.