Reported traumatic injuries among West Coast Dungeness crab fishermen, 2002-2014

Details

• Personal Author:
  Bovbjerg V ; Case S ; Kincl, Laurel ; Lucas D ; Syron, Laura
• Description:
  Background: Commercial fishing is a high-risk occupation. The West Coast Dungeness crab fishery has a high fatality rate; however, nonfatal injuries have not been previously studied. The purpose of this report was to describe the characteristics of fatal and nonfatal traumatic occupational injuries and associated hazards in this fleet during 2002-2014. Materials and methods: Data on fatal injuries were obtained from a surveillance system managed by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. Data on nonfatal injuries were manually abstracted from Coast Guard investigation reports and entered into a study database. Descriptive statistics were used to characterise demographics, injury characteristics, and work processes performed. Results: Twenty-eight fatal and 45 nonfatal injuries were reported between 2002 and 2014 in the Dungeness crab fleet. Most fatalities were due to vessel disasters, and many nonfatal injuries occurred on-deck when fishermen were working with gear, particularly when hauling the gear (47%). The most frequently reported injuries affected the upper extremities (48%), and fractures were the most commonly reported injury type (40%). The overall fatality rate during this time period was 209 per 100,000 full-time equivalent workers and the rate of nonfatal injury was 3.4 per 1,000 full-time equivalent workers. Conclusions: Dungeness crab fishermen are at relatively high risk for fatal injuries. Nonfatal injuries were limited to reported information, which hampers efforts to accurately estimate nonfatal injury risk and understand fishing hazards. Further research is needed to identify work tasks and other hazards that cause nonfatal injuries in this fleet. Engaging fishermen directly may help develop approaches for injury prevention. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Epidemiology Hunting Mortality Occupational Health Risk Assessment Risk Factors Safety
• Keywords:
  Author Keywords: Commercial Fishing Fishing-industry Injuries Injury-prevention Marine-workers Mortality-data Occupational Safety Risk-analysis Risk-factors Surveillance-programs Traumatic-injuries Work-performance Work-practices

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• ISSN:
  1641-9251
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Cooperative Agreement
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Alaska ; Oregon ; OSHA Region 10
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  WSD - Western States Division
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  207-210
• Volume:
  66
• Issue:
  4
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20047237
• Citation:
  Int Marit Health 2015 Dec; 66(4):207-210
• Contact Point Address:
  Samantha Case, MPH, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Western States Division, Alaska Office, 4230 University Dr. Ste 310, Anchorage, AK 99508
• Email:
  scase@cdc.gov
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2016
• NORA Priority Area:
  Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing
• Performing Organization:
  Oregon State University
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20140901
• Source Full Name:
  International Maritime Health
• End Date:
  20180831
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:0828f5e91cef67abc5c3037cf5612a0cfef7d437cc21a0d090ebbe41c406b185200e801cbbe9e1ffe807a07725f65228371a14c57319f9ad96bf39bc54764f87
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/202384/cdc_202384_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 80.31 KB ]