Dutch Safety Board


The Dutch Safety Board is an organisation based in The Hague, Netherlands. The first DSB Chairman was Pieter van Vollenhoven, who served from 2005 until 2011. He was succeeded by Tjibbe Joustra, who retired in 2019; he was succeeded by former Finance Minister Jeroen Dijsselbloem.

History

The formation of the DSB occurred after the Enschede fireworks disaster and the Volendam café fire. The DSB was formed in 2005 by a merger between the defence and public transportation safety boards. It replaced the Dutch Transport Safety Board.
As of 2012 the DSB actively investigates accidents and incidents related to aviation, construction and services, crisis management and aid provision, defence, human and animal health care, industry and networks, pipelines, rail transport, shipping, as well as water. The DSB has the authorisation to investigate accidents and incidents in any conceivable field.
The National Bureau of Air Accidents Investigation of Ukraine had requested that the DSB participate in the international investigation of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17; the DSB received formal notice of the accident from the NBAAI on 18 July 2014. The NBAAI delegated the investigation to the DSB because of the large number of Dutch passengers and the fact that the flight originated in Amsterdam.
As a result of the 2017 Fipronil egg scandal, the Dutch Safety Board announced on the 8th of August that an official investigation has been initiated.

Areas of investigations

Operational sectors of investigations include:
The board acts as an autonomous organisation. Its code of conduct is established by law.
The organisation consists of a Board and a Bureau. The Board has five permanent members, the Bureau fulfills executive tasks.