Ships managed by the Synergy Marine Group — the company that managed the vessel that hit Baltimore's Key Bridge — have been involved in at least three deadly incidents since 2018, according to investigations and statements from officials in Australia, Singapore, and the Philippines. In 2018, a person onboard a vessel managed by Synergy in Australia was killed in an accident involving the ship’s personnel elevator, according to a report from the Australian Transportation Safety Bureau. “Many of these accidents involve the failure to apply existing safety management procedures and/or identified safety barriers that have proven effective in reducing the risks associated with elevator maintenance," the safety board's director, Stuart Macleod, was quoted saying in the report. In 2019, an officer on a Synergy-registered vessel in Singapore was reported missing after “likely fallen overboard while performing inspection or cleaning jobs at the outboard side,” according to a report by Singapore’s Transport Safety Investigation Bureau. The tanker referenced in the Philippine Coast Guard report, Petite Soeur, has been managed by Synergy since October 2022, according to the Electronic Quality Shipping Information System (Equasis) — a global tool promoting maritime safety.

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Persons: Stuart Macleod, ” Organizations: Synergy, —, Australian Transportation Safety Bureau, Singapore’s Transport Safety Investigation, Philippines Coast Guard, Philippine Coast Guard, Electronic Quality Shipping Locations: Australia, Singapore, Philippines