Captain Alexandros LignosCaptain Alexandros Lignos
Master Mariner - Marine Superintendent
Fatigue doesn’t cause accidents. It is the
accident-waiting to happen.
It is the no 1 systemic threat in shipping.
More than 920 major incidents between 2008 and 2022
linked to crew fatigue.
In the last 5 years, fatigue was a contributing factor
in over 200 groundings and collisions.
1 in 4 shipping casualties is caused by fatigue. So
lets talk about money then.
Every year shipping pays over 2.2 billion usd in
fatigue-related insurance claims, repairs, lost cargo, and legal fees.
Average direct cost per major fatigue accident is 2
million dollars.
Indirect cost? Crew turnover, trauma, lost experience,
rising premiums, untold human damage. In July 2021, Wakashio ran aground in
pristine waters off Mauritius Captain intentionally altered course to have a
bit of shore signal more due to crews mental burn out. 96% of all maritime
casualties involve human error. In up to 25%, fatigue is a direct factor.
Today, the average ship is 20+ years old and needs
more repairs, more inspections, more paperwork, less rest. Rest hour records?
Fiction.
A recent study found 61% percent of seafarers admit
falsifying rest hour records.
43% of officers report falling asleep on watch at
least once in their last contract.
During unannounced PSC or vetting inspections, 77%
percent of crews admit working straight through 18 or more hours without proper
rest.
Chronic fatigue increases the risk of heart disease by
48%, depression by 62%, and long-term cognitive decline by 39% percent.
Wearable biometric technology already exists.
80 to 120 usd per crew member buys real-time
monitoring of sleep cycles, heart rate, and stress.
Fatigue risk algorithms can warn the captain before
disaster strikes, allowing decompression time or relief crew.
If just 1 in 10 ships used it, global industry could
save up to 700 million dollars per year in avoidable losses.
A single company trialing smart fatigue monitoring
reduced incident rates by 36% in 12 months.
But most of the industry still hides behind fake
records and paper audits.
We track emissions, fuel, and OPEX but not the
exhaustion behind the controls.
This is not a seafarer problem. This is a regulatory
and institutional failure.
Until real fatigue data is collected, protected, and
used proactively, people will keep dying and ships will keep breaking
We need transparency, real data, and zero tolerance
for fatigue cover-ups.
Flag states and IMO must make biometric fatigue
monitoring mandatory, with data protections for the crew.
No more lost ships, no more broken families, no more
silence.
It's time to treat fatigue as the Class A hazard it
really is.
Because the next accident isn’t a matter of if. It’s a
matter of sleep debt and time.
Protect the people who move the world. No cargo is
worth a life.
HERE BELOW, ARE SOME OF THE COMMENTS / REPLIES
DION VASILAKIS Master Mariner
Just for the records the Wakashio grounding was just “human error.” The captain sailed closer to shore so the crew could get phone signal. Risky? Yes. But also revealing. When contact with your family is that rare, it can outweigh every protocol.
We keep hearing about fatigue. We wear smart devices.
We track sleep, heart rate, stress.
What exactly does the device measure as recovery?
Technology can help — but it can’t replace empathy,
and it doesn’t address the deeper issue:
Maybe ships are simply operating with too few people
for the job.
Maybe the answer isn’t just monitoring, but
reinforcing the crew.
We’re asking fewer people to do more — with stricter
compliance, more paperwork, aging vessels, and heavier inspections. Fatigue
isn’t just a biological issue — it’s structural.
Before enforcing more tracking, we should ask:
Why are so many seafarers unable to rest, even when
they’re “off duty”?
Real progress won’t come only from sensors.
It will come from:
• A culture
that puts people before paperwork
• Manning
models that reflect today’s real workload
• Systems that
support, not just surveil
It is a harsh environment and bold changes need to be
done so all seamen return to their family the same shape they join on board!!!
+....And chief officers tell cadets to maintain rest hour records.
+Jason Wood Chief Officer / Mate (driving mate)
Very well said 👍🏻.
+John Poulson MSc. CEng. Chief Surveyor CEO
Poulson Marine Consultants
Totally agree Captain. I’m not sure how far it’s
necessary to even drill down into the numbers. Anyone who has - and even anyone
who hasn’t - sailed into North European ports for example knows just by the
schedule that the hours of rest theory goes out the window fast. By the time
you have covered standbys, loaded / discharged cargo, taken stores &
spares, dealt with authorities, some unscheduled engine work and the never
ending paperwork etc etc. in and out of Dunkirk, Le Havre, Antwerp, Rotterdam,
Bremerhaven, Hamburg, river passages and locks, Channel Pilots, North Sea
Pilots, etc etc. Captains and Chief Engineers for one are exhausted. Where’s
the line item or column for that?
+ Harilaos Petrakakos Master's degree at Massachusetts Institute of Technology
John Poulson MSc. CEng. Chief Surveyor CEO I have
found it in so many ships. But it’s an acceptable deficiency only by the crew.
The crew is responsible to keep accurate records. Then the shipowners would
realize that there are not enough crew members on board.
+Mooring Master at Top Fenders Ltd
Thank you for bringing the reality to life! Great job
Capt
+Capt. Rolfs / Consultant
Take the ISM / SMS system, keeping watch etc. and
write the actual work hours required for each job.
Then have a look how many "crew hours" you
actually have available due to "minimum safe manning"...you will come
to a logical conclusion that most (all?) rest hour sheets are fake.
I think PSC and Owners know it too.
I hope one day a Maritime Law Student will pick up
this serious topic for his diploma / dissertation 🙏, and I will give him my full support.
