Sansha Navigation Mark Office Takes Multidimensional Measures to Safeguard the Fishing Season

Recently, the Sansha Navigation Mark Office, focusing on the theme of "Ensuring Safe Fishing and Navigation," has launched a special escort action for the fishing season in collaboration with the Sansha Maritime Bureau. Adhering to the principles of "navigation safety first, balanced supervision, and synchronized education," they have implemented a series of measures such as joint patrol inspections, dedicated navigation mark checks, and safety warning education to comprehensively prevent collision risks between commercial and fishing vessels, striving to maintain the stability of navigation order in the Sansha sea area.

Joint patrol inspections strengthen dynamic control of key waters. Both parties have formed a joint patrol team by selecting key personnel, focusing on areas with dense fishing activities such as around Yongxing Island and the Qilianyu Islands, as well as high-risk waters where commercial and fishing vessels intersect. During the patrols, they simultaneously check the navigation status of waterways, the effectiveness of navigation aids, and the operational conditions of fishing vessels. They promptly remind passing commercial and fishing vessels to enhance lookout and standardize navigation, dynamically monitor vessel activities in the jurisdiction, and ensure early detection, early warning, and early resolution of risks, jointly purifying the maritime navigation environment during the fishing season.

Special inspections of navigation marks strengthen the foundational support for navigation assistance. Based on the navigation support needs for the fishing season, comprehensive inspections of dedicated and public navigation marks in the jurisdiction are conducted, focusing on identifying and addressing issues such as mark displacement, light malfunctions, and structural damage. Faulty marks are promptly repaired to ensure all navigation aids function effectively. Additionally, adjustments are made to the distribution of certain navigation marks based on fishing vessel departure habits and commercial shipping routes, providing clear, reliable, and continuous navigation guidance for fishing and commercial vessels, effectively ensuring the smooth operation of maritime safety channels.

Onboard and port-based education enhances crew collision avoidance skills. By focusing on grassroots efforts and proactive measures, maritime departments collaborate to visit ports and board arriving vessels to conduct face-to-face safety warning education for commercial ship crew members and fishermen. Using a "case review + practical guidance" approach, they analyze typical collision incidents between commercial and fishing vessels in the jurisdiction, explain disaster causes such as lookout negligence and delayed evasive actions, and interpret the principles of "early, large, wide, and clear" avoidance as well as nighttime navigation precautions. They also verify the proper use of very high frequency (VHF) equipment and the recognition of signal lights and shapes on-site, correcting non-compliant behaviors point by point. Additionally, bilingual safety brochures are distributed, warning banners are hung, and fishermen are guided to adopt a safety mindset of "proactive avoidance and enhanced lookout," clarifying the risk points of encounters between commercial and fishing vessels to improve maritime workers' safety awareness at the source.

Next, the Sansha Navigation Mark Office will continue to consolidate the achievements of the special escort action for the fishing season, closely monitor the maritime navigation situation and changes in fishing activities during the later stages of the fishing season, dynamically adjust the frequency of navigation mark inspections and patrols, deepen collaborative coordination with maritime, coast guard, and comprehensive law enforcement departments, and ensure a closed-loop management of problem rectification. Efforts will be made to promote the normalization and long-term effectiveness of collision prevention safety education for commercial and fishing vessels, effectively building a solid maritime safety barrier in the Sansha jurisdiction during the fishing season, and fully safeguarding the safety of people's lives and property as well as the stable development of the marine economy.