CMI Report Writing & Case Documentation 4 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: When a marine investigator uses a 'fault tree analysis' in their report, they are:
- Documenting the vessel's mechanical fault history
- Graphically mapping how multiple contributing factors combined to cause an incident (Correct answer)
- Listing regulatory violations discovered during the investigation
- Ranking witnesses by credibility
Correct answer: Graphically mapping how multiple contributing factors combined to cause an incident
A fault tree analysis is a top-down graphical tool that identifies all possible causes and their logical relationships that contributed to an undesired event.
Question 2: Under the IMO Casualty Investigation Code (Res. MSC.255(84)), investigations are intended to:
- Determine criminal liability of vessel officers
- Identify safety issues and prevent recurrence, not to apportion blame or liability (Correct answer)
- Establish insurance claim validity
- Facilitate flag state sanctions against shipowners
Correct answer: Identify safety issues and prevent recurrence, not to apportion blame or liability
The IMO Casualty Investigation Code states that investigations aim to improve maritime safety and prevent future casualties, not to assign blame or liability.
Question 3: In documenting a grounding incident, which datum is most critical for accurately plotting the casualty position?
- The vessel's last port of departure
- The GPS coordinate referenced to a specific chart datum such as WGS-84 (Correct answer)
- The depth of water recorded by the echo sounder
- The bearing to the nearest lighthouse
Correct answer: The GPS coordinate referenced to a specific chart datum such as WGS-84
GPS coordinates must reference a specific geodetic datum like WGS-84 to ensure positional accuracy when compared to nautical charts used in the investigation.
Question 4: A CMI should include a 'safety recommendation' in their report when:
- The vessel owner requests one
- The investigation identifies a systemic safety issue that could prevent future casualties (Correct answer)
- The casualty involved a foreign-flagged vessel
- All witnesses agree on the cause of the incident
Correct answer: The investigation identifies a systemic safety issue that could prevent future casualties
Safety recommendations are issued when the investigation reveals systemic issues, procedural deficiencies, or regulatory gaps that could cause future casualties if unaddressed.
Question 5: The 'proximate cause' in a marine casualty report refers to:
- The most geographically close contributing factor
- The immediate, direct cause that set the casualty in motion without which it would not have occurred (Correct answer)
- The cause identified earliest in the investigation timeline
- The cause most easily correctable by regulation
Correct answer: The immediate, direct cause that set the casualty in motion without which it would not have occurred
The proximate cause is the direct, immediate act or condition that triggered the casualty, distinguishing it from more remote contributing or root causes.
Question 6: When a CMI documents a 'near miss' incident, the primary value of this documentation is:
- To trigger mandatory insurance rate reviews
- To identify hazardous conditions before a serious casualty occurs (Correct answer)
- To satisfy port state control inspection requirements
- To establish a disciplinary record for involved crew members
Correct answer: To identify hazardous conditions before a serious casualty occurs
Near-miss documentation captures valuable safety data about hazardous conditions and systemic weaknesses before they escalate into actual casualties.
Question 7: In a marine investigation report, a 'causal factor' differs from a 'root cause' in that:
- Causal factors are always human errors while root causes are always mechanical
- A causal factor contributed to the incident while the root cause is the fundamental systemic deficiency that allowed it (Correct answer)
- Root causes require regulatory citation while causal factors do not
- Causal factors are identified by witnesses while root causes are determined by experts
Correct answer: A causal factor contributed to the incident while the root cause is the fundamental systemic deficiency that allowed it
Causal factors are conditions or actions that contributed to the incident, while the root cause is the deepest systemic deficiency whose elimination would prevent recurrence.
CMI Report Writing & Case Documentation 4
When a marine investigator uses a 'fault tree analysis' in their report, they are: