Places of refuge for ships in distress: the South African approach and challenges

The South African Maritime Safety Authority (“SAMSA”) responds to emergency calls from distressed ships. SAMSA, as a coastal authority, operates in terms of the South African maritime regulatory framework and its approach used to be robust. For example, South Africa is the first country to recognize the need to have a tug solely for the purpose of assisting ships in distress. However, close examination of the recent maritime incidents shows that SAMSA’s approach is falling short of keeping up with the ever changing challenges of places of refuge for ships in distress. This paper seeks to critically assess SAMSA’s approach to ships in distress as informed by the South African regulatory framework. The paper will further examine the possible solutions to identified shortcomings.