“People often ask when the world will return to its normal days. Don’t wait for normal days. Assume that abnormal days are normal days. Today’s abnormal normal is now our new normal.”
Mehmet Murat Ildan (Turkish playwright and author)
Last month’s Navigator Magazine was the always-popular, annual safety issue. It always highlights and puts the importance of safety in the fishery out front, where it should always be.
As every harvester knows, fishing is a dangerous occupation at the best of times. But trying to operate a viable fishing enterprise in the midst of a global pandemic — well, that kind of ratchets everything up a few notches.
While every good skipper always has a detailed, comprehensive and methodical list of safe operating procedures — both on land and at sea — it is highly unlikely they had built-in safeguards for something like COVID-19.
Working on a fishing vessel involves long hours in rough weather and in usually close quarters. The COVID-19 safeguard of physical distancing is difficult, if not impossible on a fishing vessel. Given this fact, where do you start to devise safety protocols to protect everyone on board? These are indeed unchartered waters.
But hat’s off to the Newfoundland and Labrador Fish Harvesting Safety Association (NL-FHSA) for taking on the daunting task of coming up with guidelines to aid in operating a safe, commercial fishery in the midst of a COVID-19 global pandemic.
“This is an unprecedented time for everyone in the fishing industry and it is challenging to develop safe work practices that can be applied to all fishing vessels given the type of vessel, vessel size and crew size. The Communicable Disease Briefing COVID-19 Safe Work Practice has been developed using the most-up-to-date public health information available on COVID-19 and is subject to change as new information on COVID-19 becomes available. It is presented as a guideline for fish harvesters to use to prevent the spread of COVID-19 on their vessel and amongst their crew. It is important to note however, that given the limited space on board most small fish vessels, if any person on board the vessel has COVID-19, it will be difficult to contain transmission of the virus to the rest of the crew. We know that not all vessels will feel it feasible to implement every best practice within this document. It is the intention that harvesters will apply what they can from this document to ensure the safest work environment possible for themselves and their fellow crew members,” explained Brenda Greenslade, NL-FHSA executive director.
While many inshore fisheries throughout Atlantic Canada are either ongoing, just starting or are about to commence, it is worthwhile to go through and outline this list of COVID-19 vessel safety guidelines.
Control Measures
Two weeks in advance of departure preparations, the owner/operator/skipper conducts a safety briefing to all crew members on COVID-19 risk assessment and safe work practices. Each crew member confirms receipt of the briefing and reviews the safe work practices relevant to them.
The owner/operator/skipper and crew members take individual measures to reduce the risk of contracting COVID-19 when not engaged in fishing. These measures are:
- Stay at home unless it is otherwise necessary.
- Avoid having visitors in your home.
- Avoid group gatherings and public spaces with crowds.
- Maintain distance from other people of at least two metres.
- Use good hand hygiene practices often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds or use a 60 per cent alcohol-based hand sanitizer.
- Use respiratory etiquette, cough or sneeze into a tissue or the bend of the arm.
- Clean and disinfect surfaces regularly.
- Self-monitor temperature to ensure it stays below 38°C.
Boarding Restrictions
The owner/operator/skipper limits entry onto the vessel to crew members and service personnel to include fuel suppliers, repair mechanics and technicians. Service personnel are to be escorted at all times by a crew member. Access to all other persons including observers, buyers, monitors, family members, etc. is denied.
Pre-board screening of all individuals (in one-on-one sessions) prior to their boarding of the vessel should take place. This consists of asking crew members and service personnel the following questions:
- Do you have two or more of the following symptoms (new or worsening): fever (or signs of fever such as chills, sweats, muscle aches and light-headedness), cough, headache, sore throat and runny nose?
- Have you been in contact with anyone over the past 14 days who exhibited symptoms of COVID-19?
- Have you been in close personal contact with anyone who has entered the province within the past 14 days?
Individuals who answer yes to any of the questions will not be permitted entry on the vessel and will be advised to go home and self-monitor and self-isolate. Crew members complete a pre-boarding self-declaration form as part of the screening process.
Loading Preparation
The owner/operator/skipper coordinates with the berth provider (processing plant, small craft harbour, harbour authority, etc.) to ensure a restricted area has a safe means of access to the vessel is provided for use only by:
- His/her crew members for loading of fishing gear, food and supplies.
- His/her fuel suppliers, repair mechanics and technicians and shore workers from the processing plant and/or truckers to load bait and ice supplies.
Physical Distancing
Crew members are required to make a conscious effort to minimize close contact with others. To do this, crew members should:
- Maintain a distance of two metres where possible.
- Avoid common greetings such as handshakes.
- Avoid handling each other’s personal effects (hats, gloves, clothing, kit bags, etc.)
- Stow personal effects.
Masks
Wearing a non-medical mask or facial covering (e.g., homemade cloth mask) in public spaces can be an additional measure crew member can take to protect others around them.
Personal Hygiene
Crew members are encouraged to practice personal hygiene to avoid contracting the virus by:
- Washing hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, especially after going to the bathroom, touching dirty surfaces such as taps and doorknobs, when preparing food, before and after eating, after coughing and sneezing, handling contaminated waste, laundry, or whenever hands look dirty.
- Use 60 per cent alcohol-based hand sanitizer if hands are not visibly dirty.
- Use disposable towels to dry hands.
- Cough or sneeze into a tissue or the bend of the arm, not the hand.
- Dispose of any tissues immediately in a lined waste basket and wash the hands afterwards.
- Avoid touching the eyes, nose, or mouth with unwashed hands.
- No sharing personal items: toothbrushes, washcloths, cigarettes.
- No sharing phones, computers and electronics unless they have been thoroughly cleaned.
Environmental Cleaning Practices
Increase the frequency of cleaning and disinfecting of high touch surfaces. Clean commonly touched surfaces frequently with regular household cleaning products or a diluted bleach solution (0.5 per cent hypochlorite).
Food Handling
In order to minimize handling of shared food, dishes and cutlery by crew members:
- Remove shared food containers such as shared coffee cream dispensers, salt and pepper shakers, etc.)
- Do not share food, unwashed eating utensils and beverage containers.
- Have one designated person involved in food preparation and dispensing food onto plates.
- Minimize handling of multiple sets of cutlery.
- Use pre-packaged snacks.
- Ensure that all food preparation, table and counter surfaces are cleaned frequently.
Sleeping Accommodations
Physical distancing of two metres between bunks on some vessels may be challenging given the layout and size of the vessel. Where possible:
- Assign crew their own bunk accommodation and do not share linens, pillows and blankets unless they have been previously laundered.
- Use curtains to provide a barrier between sleeping areas.
Unloading Preparations
The owner/operator/skipper coordinates with the berth provider to ensure a restricted area and a safe means of access to the vessel is provided for use only by:
- His/her crew members for unloading of fishing gear, food and supplies.
- Shore workers from the processing plant to deposit the landed catch, respecting the distance of two metres between individuals.
- Dockside monitors, buyers and graders.
Crew Members Who Become Ill At Sea
Prior to sailing, crew members are prepared for emergencies and complete emergency drills. Crew members should notify the owner/operator/skipper immediately if they start to feel ill with symptoms of COVID-19. Based on the condition of the crew member and the presenting signs and symptoms, the owner/operator/skipper will follow their emergency response plan and implement the necessary plan of action to return the crew member to shore. Whenever possible, measures should be taken to isolate the ill crew member from the rest of the crew to decrease the person-to-person transmission of the virus. When doing this:
- Isolate the ill crew member where possible to their sleeping quarters, monitor and provide food, water, tissues and other necessary supplies.
- Clean and disinfect shared accommodations and bathrooms frequently.
- Place laundry, bedding and towels used by the ill crew member in a waste bag and stored securely away from other people.
- Use of a mask by ill individuals may act as a barrier and helps stop the tiny droplets from spreading during coughing or sneezing. Masks should not be touched or handled during use. If the mask gets wet or dirty with secretions, it must be changed immediately. Discard the mask in a household waste bag after use. Wash and dry the hands after removal of the mask.
Reaching Shore When a Crew Member has COVID-19 Symptoms
Upon reaching shore, ill crew members who are experiencing symptoms of COVID-19 should do the following:
- Go immediately home, monitor symptoms and self-isolate.
- Complete the government-approved COVID-19 self-assessment.
Crew members who were in close person-to-person contact with the ill crew member and are experiencing COVID-19-like symptoms may have been potentially exposed to the virus. Crew members in this situation should follow the same practices as outlined above.
While the COVID-19 vessel safety guidelines outlined here appear rather comprehensive, as everyone knows, there are currently no anti-viral medications or vaccines out there that can prevent the spread of this novel coronavirus.
COVID-19 is highly contagious and everyone is at risk. The elderly and those with underlying medical conditions are particularly susceptible. Currently, the most effective means of minimizing the risk of COVID-19 is to implement multiple strategies using engineering and administrative control measures, as well as personal protective equipment.
However, there is no more resilient industry out there than the fishery. Harvesters have been proving that for generations. But COVID-19 looks like it is going to be with us for a while, so we must all become accustomed to what is now the new normal in the fishing industry.
Stay safe everyone.
