– I have been in two shipwrecks myself, and know what it means to feel that you are in the sea, and that things are going crazy here. That’s what Fisheries and Oceans Minister Bjørnar Skjæran (Ap) says. He meets news to talk about the work to put in place a zero vision for everyone who has the sea as their workplace. – I know what it is about and I feel a responsibility to do something about so many drowning, says Fisheries and Oceans Minister Bjørnar Skjæran (Ap) Photo: Kjartan Rørslett / news On behalf of the Ministry of Trade and Fisheries, the Norwegian Maritime Directorate has delivered a professional basis for a zero vision. The government has now adopted the zero vision, and the directorate will continue to work on measures that will become a concrete action plan. – Too many people are drowning. And we have seen from other areas, whether it is the industry or on the road, that developing a zero vision and having a unified and proper approach to it works, says the fisheries minister to news. Close to drowning One early May morning almost 25 years ago, Bjørnar Skjæran got into his small boat. He started up the outboard motor, and set out from his home port in Lurøy municipality in Nordland. The weather was nice, but a little windy. He was going out to one of the outermost islands. At the bottom of the boat, the petrol tank lay loose, with the hose in a coil. The Helgeland coast outside Lurøy in Nordland is characterized by many scattered islands and islets. Photo: Gorm Kallestad / NTB After a few minutes of traveling outwards, the engine suddenly cut off. – I considered myself to be reasonably used to boats, but I had made a move that turned out to be fatal for me. I sat with my foot in a coil of the petrol hose, says Skjæran today. The snake tightened around the young man’s foot, and tossed him into the sea. – I stayed with the engine down. Stuck under water The petrol tank was left in the sea surface like a bubble. The skjæran was suspended in the middle, under water. – I was stuck between a blower and a 40 kilo engine. What kept me from drowning right then and there was that the hose clamp came loose, so the engine disappeared, and then I got up, he says. It was difficult to catch up with the boat that had drifted away in the wind. – It was quite a tough round where you get to test yourself. I was in good physical shape, 25 years old and well trained, so I would never have been able to make the effort today, he says. Feeling a responsibility Skjæran has always loved the sea, and still does, despite the accident. – When we discuss these questions about drowning and those who have their daily work at sea, I feel that I know what it is about, and that I have a responsibility to try to do something about it. Fisheries and Oceans Minister Bjørnar Skjæran has always been fond of the sea, even though it nearly killed him. Photo: Ministry of Industry and Fisheries In the last five years, 171 people have died at sea, according to figures from the Norwegian Maritime Directorate. 132 of the deaths occurred in connection with recreational vessels. Skjæran will now have systematic work that looks at regulations, equipment and attitude campaigns. – For the government, it is absolutely fundamental. We want to do what we can so that no one drowns. – But if it is to be done properly, it will cost money. Are you willing to pay for it? – We must not always exaggerate how much things will cost. There are many things that are free, then of course there is something that is not free. It will be part of the assessment of how this action plan is to be developed. – Artificial separation Siv Jensen is the general manager of Flyte, an umbrella organization for everyone who works to prevent drowning in Norway. She applauds the work, and believes the government’s new zero vision is a step in the right direction, but: – I think the government draws an artificial distinction when they now concentrate on people whose jobs are connected to the sea. By all means, it is important that they feel safe when traveling on the sea and doing a job. But there are vanishingly few, thank God, who drown as a result of their profession, says Jensen to news. Siv Jensen believes that a zero vision for drowning is all well and good, but that it must apply to everyone, and not just those who work at the sea. Photo: Gorm Kallestad / NTB And it’s also not the case that all drowning accidents happen at sea. 40 per cent of accidents happen in rivers, fresh water and pools, says Jensen. The number of deaths related to leisure has also increased in recent years, from 26 in 2021 to 34 in 2022. – And therefore a zero vision, if it is to have meaning, must apply to all traffic by and on water. And it must be accompanied by an action plan with measures and tools, which will enable us to bring down the very ugly drowning statistics, she says. Storting representative Olve Grotle (H) says he is happy that the government is now following up on the unanimous zero vision decision that the Conservative Party took the initiative for. – We are working to ensure that there should also be a zero vision for all types of drowning accidents, something we together with FrP also asked for in the state budget. Bjørnar Skjæran says that there are practical reasons why they want to put in place a zero vision for working life at sea first. – In my work, I have taken as a starting point what lies within the Norwegian Maritime Directorate’s area of responsibility. Part of that is also that we are a government that puts working life high on the agenda, he says. Adult men overrepresented One group in particular worries Jensen in Flyte. – The vast majority of people who die as a result of drowning are well-grown men. We have to reach them, but we can’t point fingers, because they have lived a long life and think they know best themselves. – So how are we then going to come up with information and knowledge, which means that they may make more well-thought-out choices, and contribute to the fact that you don’t have accidents because you haven’t brought safety equipment, for example? Jensen asks himself. Fisheries Minister Skjæran says that he has accepted the challenge from Flyte, and started work on a general zero vision for drowning. – I have taken the challenge from Siv Jensen with me, and we have started work across several ministries to see how we can have a zero vision for drowning in all areas, says Skjæran.
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Was close to dying at sea myself – news Norway – Overview of news from various parts of the country
