Real Life Incident: Fatal Consequences of Delayed Action – Cadet’s Life Lost to Undetected Toxic Fumes at Sea

On a cargo vessel at sea, two crew members, a fitter and a cadet, were tasked with a welding job in a hold. As they gathered on deck near where the work was to be done, they both noticed a strong smell of heavy fuel oil (HFO) fumes from a nearby vent. While the fitter entered the hold to weld, the cadet stayed on deck to pass hoses and equipment. He was about 3.5m from the HFO vent during the time of work, which took about 15 to 20 minutes.

When they stopped for lunch, the cadet informed the fitter that he was not feeling well and would rest instead of having