NTSB Continues to Push for Safety Management System Mandate
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is once again calling for safety management systems (SMS) to be required for all U.S.-flagged passenger vessels.
On the fifth anniversary of the 2019 Conception dive boat fire that killed 34 people, Jennifer Homendy, chair of the federal safety watchdog, held a media availability with the families of the victims and again called on the U.S. Coast Guard to mandate SMS on passenger vessels such as ferries, tour and sightseeing vessels, charter boats and water taxis.
“For five years, I’ve worked with the families of the victims of this terrible tragedy to spur federal action on our recommendations,” Homendy said. “The NTSB first recommended SMS in the marine mode 20 years ago, and specifically called for it on small passenger vessels since 2012. Additionally, Congress authorized the Coast Guard to mandate SMS in 2010. It’s 2024, and here we are, with no action. We know our recommendations save lives. I call on the Coast Guard to finish its work implementing solutions to prevent such a tragedy from occurring again.”
Homendy made her remarks after a gathering of family members and first responders at the Conception Memorial in Santa Barbara, Calif. on the five-year anniversary of the fatal incident. On September 2, 2019, the Conception dive boat, a small passenger vessel with 33 passengers and a crew of six was anchored for the night about 24 miles south-southwest of Santa Barbara. In the early morning hours, it caught fire, burned to the waterline and sank. All 33 passengers and one crewmember died in the fire.
The NTSB has long advocated for the implementation of SMS. In 2005, the NTSB issued a safety recommendation to the Coast Guard to seek legislative authority to require all US-flag ferry operators to implement safety management systems, and once obtained, require all U.S.-flag ferry operators to do so. Congress granted that authority in 2010.
The SMS recommendation for all passenger vessels was first issued after the NTSB investigation of a 2010 Staten Island Ferry accident in New York City that injured dozens. That same safety recommendation was reiterated following the NTSB’s investigation of the Island Lady in 2018 and at the conclusion of the Conception investigation in 2020.
In addition to her comments, Homendy sent a letter to the Coast Guard commandant and the Secretary of Homeland Security urging them to implement the SMS requirements without further delay.