Question 1

Three hours after grounding, the vessel is stable but listed 5° port. An AB approaches the chief officer and says he wants to abandon ship in the lifeboat because "the ship might sink." Other crew are showing visible anxiety. The vessel is not in immediate danger of sinking based on current soundings, and MRCC has a tug en route (ETA 4 hours).

How should the Master handle this?

Accepted Answer

Muster all crew and brief them clearly on the actual situation — stable list, tug ETA, no current evidence of progressive flooding. Explain that the lifeboats will be lowered to embarkation deck as a precaution but abandonment is not ordered. Reassure and task crew with productive duties (SOPEP, soundings, damage control). The Master has ultimate authority on abandonment — a premature or panicked launch in darkness near rocks is itself a major hazard The Master has absolute authority over abandonment decisions under SOLAS. MLC 2006 Standard A4.3 addresses the right to leave a dangerous workplace — it does not grant crew the right to unilaterally abandon a grounded but stable vessel against the Master's order. However, dismissing crew anxiety without explanation breeds panic; a transparent brief with real data and clear tasks channels that energy productively. Premature lifeboat launch at night near a rocky headland is a well-documented secondary disaster. The correct tone is informed authority, not dismissal or capitulation.

Question 2

MV CEDAR RIDGE, 0215. You are the OOW. The engine telegraph is set at full ahead. You notice the RPM repeater on the bridge has dropped from 98 to 74 RPM over the last 4 minutes without any engine room call. Visibility 2nm. Headland 9nm to the west. Set/drift pushing the vessel 1.5 knots toward the headland.

What is your immediate priority?

Accepted Answer

Call the Master immediately and simultaneously ring the engine room to report the loss of RPM. Do not wait to investigate further — you are approaching a headland in reduced visibility with a set toward it and your speed is unexpectedly reducing SOLAS V and standard BRM require the Master to be called for any change that may affect the safe navigation of the vessel — and a loss of power approaching a headland in restricted visibility with an adverse set is exactly that situation. The instinct to "investigate before disturbing the Master" is a dangerous normalisation: the Master cannot make informed decisions if he is called 10 minutes late. Call Master AND engine room simultaneously. The course alteration alone solves nothing if the engine is failing.

Question 3

Before the Master or engine room responds, at 0217 a total blackout occurs. All navigation lights, radar, ECDIS, and steering control lose power simultaneously. The emergency lighting activates. The vessel is now at 8nm from the headland, making approximately 8 knots on momentum. No response from the engine room.

What is the FIRST thing you do?

Accepted Answer

Sound the general alarm immediately to muster all crew. Make a SECURITÉ broadcast on VHF Ch.16 to warn other traffic that you are a vessel not under command. Attempt to raise the engine room by telephone. Sound the NUC sound signals (2 prolonged blasts) In a blackout the immediate priority is collision avoidance — you are a vessel not under command and traffic cannot see you. General alarm alerts crew; NUC signals (COLREGS Rule 35e: 2 prolonged blasts in restricted visibility) warn other vessels; SECURITÉ on Ch.16 provides situational awareness to the traffic picture. Manual steering is irrelevant without propulsion. Leaving the bridge to investigate the generator is a solo action that abandons the conn at the most critical moment. The emergency generator will start automatically — your job is collision avoidance and crew muster.