Australians can be reassured that ocean freight shipping companies are acting to protect the health of waterfront workers, says peak body Shipping Australia.
Shipping lines are taking strict precautions and globally, not one crew members serving on a commercial cargo ship been found to have contracted Novel Coronavirus.
Crews remain onboard during their Chinese port calls and wear protective masks if required to interact with locals. There is no shore leave and no crew changes in mainland China and most ships usually only stay in port for a few hours.
Only a tiny number of people, such as safety inspectors and pilots, are allowed to board ships in mainland China and these workers wear masks and often have their temperature taken before they are allowed to board. Crews protect their own health by also wearing masks when visitors are on the ship. Other precautions include frequent hand-washing and wearing gloves.
While sailing to Australia, crew have their health monitored with daily temperature checks. Health supervisors are on the lookout for symptoms such as a cough, a fever, or breathing difficulties any flu-like symptoms are reported to Australian authorities prior to arrival.
Rod Nairn, CEO of Shipping Australia, commented, “These are very effective health protection measures. Shipping companies are looking after their crews and everyone working in a shipping company wants this virus to be contained. No-one wants to see it spread. The simple fact is that the crews are doing everything they possibly can to protect their own health.
“With all these protective precautions in place, it is extremely unlikely that crew members of commercial cargo vessels will be exposed to the virus. In practical effect, because of their self-isolating measures, crews working commercial cargo ships that have called at mainland ports should not be considered to have visited China”, he concluded.
In all cases, ships calling in Australia within 14 days of calling at ports in mainland China are required to comply with Australian Border Force rules including wearing facemasks when interacting with Australian maritime workers and not to proceed on shore leave until 14 days have elapsed.
