It had become clear during the time spent auditing that audits were destined to become more and more important as companies sold their ships to avoid oil spill liability claims. Texaco had used me on several occasions in the early 1990's to do some inspections on 3rd party ships. After the US fleet was sold in 1995, Texaco continued to use me, and other former employees, more and more for these inspections. In 1999, Texaco sent me to Hemel Hempstead, UK, outside of London, to be their representative in helping develop the initial OCIMF (Oil Companies International Marine Forum) vetting inspection format. I was kept gainfully busy through 2002 when Chevron merged with Texaco, inspecting ships in ports stretching from Come By Chance, Newfoundland to St Eustatius to Corinto, Nicaragua. Additionally, a group of former Texaco Port Engineers formed a company called Marine Management Inc which primarily inspected ships bound for Nigeria. I also gained approval from 6 different Flag States to carry out inspections on their behalf. It was a busy time.
One of my more memorable inspections was in Newfoundland. I flew to St. John's the day after Thanksgiving. Being late November, it had already snowed there so I decided to wear appropriate clothing which included jeans and a plaid, flannel shirt. Upon checking in to the airport hotel, I was surprised to see throngs of people wearing tuxedos and fancy evening gowns. I received more than a few dirty looks. I asked the registration gal what the occasion was and she said it was a Christmas party. I thought it was a bit early for a Christmas party but was informed that Newfoundlanders used any excuse they could to party.
That particular ship inspection had its moments. The ship had encountered very heavy weather on its voyage from Europe and had lost an anchor enroute. Additionally, part of the IG line and many handrails had been swept away. There was no way the ship could pass inspection. The attending superintendent didn't want to hear that and begged me to ignore the many defects found. Sorry buddy, can't do that. He clearly knew the damage that had occurred during the voyage and should have cancelled the inspection but failed to do so.
After Texaco vetting had been taken over by Chevron, I became a gypsy vetting inspector, carrying out inspections for the likes of Shell, Chevron, Conoco-Phillips, and Stat Oil. Eventually the travel started to wear on me so I decided to shift my business from vetting inspections to Flag State inspections which required far less travel. Each Flag State had its own inspection form but the inspections were basically similar. I wound up bastardizing my own form, taking elements from the various Flag forms and putting them in the sequence that I liked to conduct the inspections. It made the inspection process more efficient and I was able to easily transpose my findings onto the required forms later on. I inspected over 1500 vessels including passenger ships, bunkers, tankers, container ships, and car carriers and quickly learned that not all Flag States are created equal, some being very reputable, others not-so-much. After several years of inspecting for multiple Flags, I settled on providing inspections only for LISCR, the Liberian Registry, which I found to be well-operated. Their standards were high and their safety department took their role seriously and strove for industry improvement. LISCR made sure their inspectors were highly trained and held courses in ISPS, ISM, and Maritime Labor. I became a lead auditor in all these fields and was able to issue vessel certification in same.
I thoroughly enjoyed my years carrying out inspections. Unfortunately, all good things must come to an end and Covid-19 saw to that. Being of a high-risk age for the virus, I officially ended my career in the fall of 2020, more than 57 years since I made my first sea-going trip on the Trinidad Corporation's SS Houston in 1963. It was a very good ride with great friendships and wonderful memories made over that time. I'll miss it for sure.
