Ships call at ports the world over since ancient times, and as such they can be exposed to many different local environments and situations.
These can include calling at ports and countries where communicable diseases are present, and as such the crew may be at risk of contracting such diseases or indeed become carriers of the bacteria or virus.
Indeed, one theory for the advent of the Black Death in Europe has been the introduction of the disease, and its spread, by infected rats being virulent stowaways on merchant ships.
Being alive to these challenges is very important for the safety of the ship's crew as well as to ensuring the uninterrupted free trading of the vessel.
Recently these issues have been the subject of significant media attention due to the renewed outbreak of the ebola virus in West Africa.
In the following loss prevention article the Association would like to provide members with facts and loss prevention advice.
See PDF for complete article.
