1 Tokyo MOU – Safety Bulletin – July 2022 Safety risks of casualties caused by cargoes SAFETY BULLETIN 03/2022 July 2022 This safety update is for: • Shippers and Shipmasters • Maritime Administrations, their officers, investigators and technical advisors Safety risks of casualties caused by cargoes This update is issued to raise awareness of the potential risk of casualties caused by cargoes, relating to containers (Annex 1) and solid bulk cargoes (Annex 2). 2 Tokyo MOU – Safety Bulletin – July 2022 Safety risks of casualties caused by cargoes Annex 1 Attention shippers and shipmasters Be aware of danger, take precautions and comply with SOLAS requirements There are many accidents caused by the mis-declaration of dangerous goods in containers and inaccurate container weight information. Cargo mis-declaration is the cause of many container fires. Accurate weight of cargo containers is a critical safety issue. Shipper shall provide Verified Gross Mass (VGM) to the ship. 3 Tokyo MOU – Safety Bulletin – July 2022 Safety risks of casualties caused by cargoes SOLAS Ch.VI Reg 5 Cargo, cargo units and cargo transport units, shall be loaded, stowed and secured throughout the voyage in accordance with the Cargo Securing Manual approved by the Administration. SOLAS Ch.VI Reg 2 Verification of the gross mass (VGM) of a packed container The cargo information shall include a general description of the cargo, the gross mass of the cargo or of the cargo units, and any relevant special properties of the cargo. The shipper of a container shall ensure the VGM is stated in the shipping document. The shipping document shall be signed by a person duly authorised by the shipper, submitted to the master or his representative and to the terminal representative sufficiently in advance, as required by the master or his representative, to be used in the preparation of the ship stowage plan. If the shipping document, with regard to a packed container, does not provide the VGM and the master or his representative and the terminal representative have not obtained the VGM of the packed container, it shall not be loaded on to the ship. How to weigh a packed container In the case of cargo carried in a container, shippers shall provide the captain or representative of the container stations with information on VGM of export containers, either by: Method 1 Weighing the packed container using appropriate measuring equipment. Method 2 Weighing each cargo item, including pallets, dunnage and other packing materials, and calculating the gross mass by adding the tare-weight of a container. Method 1 Method 2 Tokyo MOU The memorandum of Understanding on Port State Control in the Asia-Pacific Region, known as the Tokyo MOU, was signed among eighteen maritime Authorities in the region on 1 st December 1993 and came into operation on 1 st April 1994. Currently, the Memorandum has 21 full members. Tokyo MOU Secretariat Ascend Shimbashi 8F, 6-19-19, Shimbashi, Minato-ku, Tokyo Japan 105-0004 Tel: +81-3-3433 0621 Fax: +81-3-3433 0624 Email: secretariat@tokyo-mou.org Website: www.tokyo-mou.org each cargo item including pallets tare-weight of container 4 Tokyo MOU – Safety Bulletin – July 2022 Safety risks of casualties caused by cargoes ANNEX 2 Attention shippers and shipmasters Be aware of danger, take precautions and comply with SOLAS requirements The liquefaction and mis-identification of solid bulk cargoes is the cause of many accidents. Pay strict attention to stowage and levelli