Today, in the context of the EU Maritime Day event in Gijón, Spain, the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA) launches its Maritime Accident Review 2009. The review, which looks at shipping in and around EU waters, shows a 19.5% drop in total accidents, and 17% drop in the number of ships involved in accidents in 2009 in comparison to the market boom years of 2007/2008, although the number was still significantly higher than in 2006. The figures also show that loss of life and pollution were substantially reduced. However, the Agency advises caution in assuming that the downward trend will continue, as an early look at January 2010 figures suggests that accident figures are already beginning to increase again as shipping traffic begins to recover.