New data reveals leading causes of seafarer deaths in 2023

New data reveals leading causes of seafarer deaths in 2023
June 25, 2025

A first-ever global data collection on seafarer fatalities offers insight into the main causes of death at sea

Seafaring has long been one of the most challenging and hazardous occupations. Seafarers face not only long periods of isolation and harsh working conditions but also significant risks to their health and safety. Despite advances in maritime technology, regulation, and training, each year, hundreds of lives are lost at sea due to a variety of causes -including occupational accidents, health-related issues, suicide, disappearances at sea, and other undetermined causes.

Each year, the international community observes the Day of the Seafarer on 25 June, acknowledging the vital contributions of seafarers to global trade and the world economy. The day also serves to raise awareness of the challenges they face and to promote improved working conditions, mental health support, and occupational safety across the industry.

Valid, reliable and timely data on seafarer deaths is critical to shaping effective safety policies for maritime transport, monitoring their effectiveness and identifying areas requiring preventive measures.

While many countries track fatalities due to occupational accidents, no comprehensive system existed for monitoring seafarer deaths arising from other causes, such as health-related issues, suicides, incidents involving persons overboard or other causes. The COVID-19 pandemic brought these gaps into sharp focus. Movement restrictions and extended periods of service on board significantly affected seafarers’ mental health, likely contributing to an increase in suicides at sea. However, in the absence of reliable data, the extent of this increase remains unquantified.
A new global standard: Reporting seafarer deaths

In response to this need, in 2022 the International Labour Conference approved a number of important amendments to the Maritime Labour Convention, 2006, as amended (MLC, 2006) that came into force at the end of 2024. One key provision requires that all deaths of seafarers employed, engaged, or working onboard ships be investigated, recorded, and reported annually to the ILO Director-General for inclusion in a global register.
Experimental data collection: A first step

To support the implementation of this new reporting requirement, an experimental data collection was conducted in 2024—marking the first global attempt to establish a standardized database on seafarer deaths by cause of death.

An enquiry sent to Ministries of Labour and, where available, national maritime authorities, sought data on number of seafarers’ deaths in 2023, disaggregated by underlying cause of death, by type, size and location of the ship, and seafarer’s sex, age, occupational position and department. Data was requested on five main causes of deaths: occupational accidents, health-related factors, persons overboard, suicide and other causes, as well as deaths that are still under investigation.

The definitions and classifications used in the enquiry were aligned with :

The MLC, 2006 provisions,
The Resolution concerning statistics of occupational injuries (resulting from occupational accidents) adopted by the International Conference of Labour Statisticians (ICLS) (https://www.ilo.org/resource/resolution-concerning-statistics-occupation...),
WHO’s International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems(ICD) (https://www.who.int/classifications/classification-of-diseases),
Classifications used in existing maritime transport statistics (e.g the classification of types of ships and the size of ships in the EqUASIS publication “The world merchant fleet in 2020 (equasis.org) and, to some extent, IMO classifications (https://www.imo.org/en/OurWork/Safety/Pages/RegulationsDefault.aspx).

Despite its experimental nature, 57 countries responded to the enquiry, demonstrating strong international engagement and laying the groundwork for a more permanent system of data collection and reporting. Out of these 57 countries, 51 provided data. The list of responding countries, along with details on coverage and comparability of data, is available in the report Global register of fatalities at sea: Experimental data collection – Report | International Labour Organization. One of the main findings is that there are notable differences in the availability and quality of the data sources used to generate statistics on seafarers’ deaths. While most countries have established recording systems capable of tracking fatalities resulting from occupational accidents, in many countries the deaths resulting from other causes are not fully captured. Also, data submitted by many countries do not support the detailed disaggregation of seafarers’ deaths by key variables.

This blog summarizes the submitted data. Although the country coverage is not comprehensive, the findings offer valuable insights into key characteristics and emerging patterns in fatal incidents at sea.
The leading cause of deaths were illnesses and diseases

A total of 403 deaths were reported by 51 countries, providing critical insight into the risks faced by seafarers.

The leading cause of death was illnesses and diseases, accounting for 139 cases. This highlights the persistent health risks inherent in maritime work. Common causes include cardiovascular events—such as heart attacks and strokes—and other non-communicable diseases, which are often aggravated by the physically demanding nature of the job, prolonged working hours, chronic stress, and limited access to timely medical care while at sea.

In addition, 91 cases of persons overboard who disappeared at sea and 74 fatalities resulting from occupational accidents collectively accounted for more than one-third of all reported deaths. Suicides with 26 cases, representing 6.5 per cent of the total, highlighted the mental health strain faced by many seafarers. A further 37 (9 per cent) of fatalities were due to other causes, including natural deaths, alcohol-related incidents, homicides, and deaths occurring ashore. Approximately 4 per cent of the cases remained under investigation at the time of reporting and could not be categorized by cause.

As the maritime transport industry is heavily male-dominated, over 95 per cent of the victims were men.

see also:
Gard Crew Claims Report 2025: Key trends in seafarer health and safety
https://gard.no/about-gard/company-news/gard-crew-claims-report-2025-key...