Coast Guard apprise offshore fishermen in Bà Rịa – Vũng Tàu Province about the necessity of installing black boxes in their boats. — VNA/VNS Photo Hoàng Nhị

BÀ RỊA-VŨNG TÀU — Many fishing boat owners in the southern province of Bà Rịa-Vũng Tàu have installed more and more modern equipment in their offshore vessels to ensure safety during the ongoing rainy season.

Nguyễn Thanh Hòa in Long Hải Town has a boat with a 300CV engine and spends 15-20 days at sea fishing.

He earns VNĐ50 million (US$2,150) per trip since he can catch round 10 tonnes with his boat, he said.

To ensure the safety of his boat with 12 crew members on board, he has installed buoys, communication systems, horns, firefighting equipment, rubber fenders and anti-sinking devices and other modern equipment, he said.

Thân Doanh Hoàng of Đất Đỏ District, who has a boat with an eight-member crew, said people go fishing whether the sea is smooth or rough, and in the past faced many difficulties and dangers during the rain and storm seasons without the modern communication equipment they have now.

In recent years, on the instructions of local authorities, offshore fishing boats docking at the Lộc An fishing port in Đất Đỏ have installed modern facilities to protect themselves from natural disasters.

The port management board checks each fishing boat before each trip to ensure that it has protective equipment and communication systems to ensure safety, Hoàng said.

When out at sea, fishermen are regularly informed about weather conditions via radio and boat monitoring devices, he said.  

“Thanks to the information systems, we can proactively contact relevant agencies to inform them about the location of fishing boats and follow their instructions when there are storms.”

Nguyễn Bi, head of the province’s Fisheries Sub-department’s seafood resources development and exploitation management division, said many big storms are forecasted for the remaining months of this year.

Therefore, the sub-department and other relevant agencies have drafted detailed plans and would implement them to ensure the safety of fishing boats, he said.

The sub-department has provided fishermen with training in the Law of Fisheries and search and rescue at sea, he said.

With the province requiring installation of black boxes in offshore fishing boats with a length of at least 15m, 2,384 out of 2,901 such vessels have done so.

The device also gives the boats information about permitted fishing areas, supports search and rescue efforts and helps keep track of the origin of the seafood that is caught.

The sub-department regularly co-operates with military border stations, fishery inspection stations and fishing ports to ensure that all equipment on boats are turned on when they leave ports.

Fishing boats with black boxes have to keep it on around the clock. — VNS