Question 1

Your excursion vessel is swamped and capsizing. The EPIRB is stowed under the helm console. What does this tell you about your emergency response capability?

Accepted Answer

In a fast-developing swamping event, a manually-activated EPIRB stowed away from the point of impact may never be reached — float-free automatic activation or a body-worn PLB is far more reliable In the real incident, neither the EPIRB nor the DSC alert button was activated — the crew were not near the helm when two waves struck in quick succession, and the EPIRB required deliberate manual removal from a stowed position. The first emergency call instead came from tourists on shore, 26 minutes after the accident.

Question 2

You need to send a distress alert because the vessel is taking on water faster than the pumps can cope. Which message format and channel/priority is correct?

Accepted Answer

A "Mayday" distress call on Channel 16 / DSC distress alert, giving position, nature of distress and assistance required Grave and imminent danger requiring immediate assistance (e.g. uncontrolled flooding) requires a Mayday distress call / DSC distress alert — Pan-Pan is for urgency without immediate danger to life, and Securité is for navigational safety information.

Question 3

True or False: An EPIRB should be registered with the relevant national authority, and the registration details kept up to date so that a false alarm can be quickly resolved or a real activation correctly attributed.

Accepted Answer

True True. EPIRB registration links the unique beacon ID to vessel and contact details, allowing SAR authorities to quickly verify activations (genuine or false) and contact the vessel/owner — unregistered or out-of-date beacons slow down the SAR response and waste resources.