Troubled Waters: Investigating the Causes and Mitigation of Waterway Accidents

Abstract

The waterways provide the quickest, least difficult, and least expensive route to carry individuals as well as goods everywhere on the globe. However, the catastrophe that occurred on the canal has been a major source of worry all around the globe for a very long time. There are a great number of mishaps that take place on the world's waterways on an annual basis. These incidents are having a negative impact on both people and the natural environment. Accidents may happen for a variety of reasons, including operator error, mechanical malfunction, poor design, and so on. This research examines the features of such incidents based on the accident data collected over the course of the previous 33 years, beginning in 1991 and continuing through 2022. The statistics on accidents came from the Department of Shipping and were included in an article that was published. The data were analyzed in accordance with a number of different variables, including the number of accidents that occurred each year, the type of vessels that were involved, the areas that were most prone to accidents. According to the findings of the research, the most common kind of accident is a collision, and the most common kind of vessel that contributes to accidents is one that transports passengers. Cargo boats and passenger vessels are involved in a disproportionately higher number of accidents in comparison to other kinds of vessels. It was also noticed that a significant number of incidents and important information are often not reported.