Study Identifies World’s Biggest Maritime Accident Hotspots

According to a new study that was conducted by the World Wildlife Fund, the South China Sea is one of the most dangerous hotspots in the world for maritime accidents.

Apart from the South China Sea and the East Indies, the East Mediterranean and the Black Sea and the British Isles, are the world’s biggest accident magnet for ships.

The World Wildlife Fund focused on maritime accidents that occurred over the past 15 years, and identified the factors that are associated with these accidents. The World Wildlife says that this is the first research of its kind into this issue.

The study was published in a report titled Accidents at Sea. The study finds that fishing vessels account for many of the maritime accidents that occur across the world every year. Nearly 25% of all vessels that are lost in maritime accidents happen to be fishing vessels.

However, general cargo vessels accounted for 40% of all the maritime accidents studied by the report. According to the World Wildlife Fund, since 1999 alone, there have been as many as 293 maritime accidents occurring in the South China Sea and East Indies.

The study analyzed the kind of risk or hazard to the environment from these maritime accidents, and found that the risk was directly linked to the type of substance that the ship was carrying at the time, including oil and crude. Apart from this, these risks also depended on the sensitivity of the marine environment where the accident occurred. The study found that 50% of all maritime collisions are caused by foundering, when a vessel becomes unstable and sinks.

Crew members may be at risk of injuries in any maritime accident. The maritime attorneys at Schechter, Shaffer & Harris, L.L.P., Accident & Injury Lawyers  represent crew members injured in maritime accidents across Texas.