LTI: Hand injury resulting from clothing catching on door

What happened?

Crew were standing down from mooring stations after a vessel left port. One crewman was passing through a heavy door, when the left sleeve of his overalls got caught on the door locking slot in the door jamb. Before he could free the sleeve, the closing door shut hard on his hand, causing injury to the ball of his thumb. First aid was rendered on board immediately. He was referred to the doctor ashore for further treatment and was advised to sign off for further treatment thereafter.

What went wrong?

• Immediate causes identified were;
  • carelessness and lack of situational awareness – he did not safely pass the door frame resulting in coverall sleeve being snagged by the door jamb
  • the cuff or sleeve of his overall was loose
  • the door closing mechanism was not properly adjusted;
• Causal factors:
  • management – inadequate work standards; the weekly inspection did not adequately identify the potential hazards of door closing mechanism and unsafe door jamb;

The root cause identified was that risks were considered tolerable – crew were using the door on a daily basis without observing and reporting the existence of the potential hazards, and wearing overalls with sleeves loose.

Members may wish to review the following incidents:

• Hand injury during retrieval of personal protective equipment (PPE) stored inside a compressor unit
• Near-miss: Drawstring on storm jacket nearly drawn into rotating equipment