Exploding line thrower sparks urgent recall order.
A line-throwing appliance exploded during testing on a Norwegian wellboat in September, seriously injuring two crew members and prompting an urgent safety response from maritime authorities.
The incident occurred at around on Thursday 11 September on board the wellboat Ronja Ode, operated by Sølvtrans, while the vessel was alongside in Vartdal, Møre og Romsdal. Crew were carrying out tests of line throwers when the second unit detonated in the hands of the operator.
According to a report submitted to the Norwegian Maritime Authority, the explosion sent fragments of the device flying across the vessel with considerable force. The operator suffered severe lacerations and fractures to the arms and wrists. A second crew member standing nearby was struck by debris and sustained head lacerations.
The authority said the line thrower was being used in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions and was still within its stated expiry date when it exploded.
The device was identified as a wheel-marked line thrower, model JH7-230-91 manufactured by Ningbo Zhenhua, with DNV approval certificate MEDB00006VB. The unit belonged to batch 22-I-04-26.
Investigators later found serious shortcomings in the product’s labelling. Critical safety instructions are split between text printed on the outside and inside of the device, meaning users must consult multiple locations to follow the full procedure. The Norwegian Maritime Authority said this flaw is not limited to the batch involved in the incident but affects the model more broadly.
As a result, the authority has ordered an immediate ban on the use of line throwers from the affected batch and instructed vessels carrying them to submit the devices for destruction. Ships equipped with the same model, regardless of batch, have also been told to replace the equipment with an alternative wheel-marked line thrower.
