S.I. No. 7/1993:

MERCHANT SHIPPING (MUSTERS AND TRAINING) (AMENDMENT) RULES, 1993.

MERCHANT SHIPPING (MUSTERS AND TRAINING) (AMENDMENT) RULES, 1993.

I, MICHAEL WOODS, Minister for the Marine, in exercise of the powers conferred on me by section 427 of the Merchant Shipping Act, 1894 (inserted by section 11 of the Merchant Shipping (Safety Convention) Act, 1952 (No. 29 of 1952)), as amended by section 10 of the Merchant Shipping Act, 1966 (No. 10 of 1966), and the Communications (Transfer of Departmental Administration and Ministerial Functions) Order, 1987 ( S.I. No. 91 of 1987 )) hereby make the following Rules:

1. These Rules may be cited as the Merchant Shipping (Musters and Training) (Amendment) Rules, 1993, and shall come into operation on the 1st day of February, 1993.

2. The Merchant Shipping (Munsters and Training) Rules, 1990 ( S.I. No. 85 of 1990 ), are hereby amended

(1) by the insertion of the following paragraphs after Rule 6(10):

"(11) Each fire drill shall include:

( a ) reporting to stations and preparing for the duties described in the muster list required by Rule 4;

( b ) starting the fire pump using at least the two required jets of water to show that the system is in proper working order.

( c ) checking firemen's outfits and other personal rescue equipment;

( d ) checking the relevant communications equipment;

( e ) checking the operation of watertight doors, fire doors, and fire dampers; and

( f ) checking the necessary arrangements for subsequent abandonment of the ship.

(12) Fire drills shall be planned in such a way that due consideration is given to regular practice in the various emergencies that may occur depending on the type of ship and its cargo.

(13) The equipment used during drills shall immediately be brought back to its fully operational condition, and any faults and defects discovered during the drills shall be remedied as soon as possible.".

(2) by the substitution of the following paragraphs for Rule 7 (2), (3) and (4):

"(2) On-board training and instructions in the use of the ship's life-saving appliances, including survival craft equipment, and in the use of the ship's fire-extinguishing appliances shall be given as soon as possible but not later than two weeks after a crew member joins the ship. However, if the crew member is on a regularly scheduled rotating assignment to the ship, such training shall be given not later than two weeks after the time of first joining the ship. Individual instruction may cover different parts of the ship's life-saving and fire extinguishing appliances, but all the ship's life-saving and fire-extinguishing appliances shall be covered within any period of two months.

(3) Each member of the crew shall be given instructions which shall include but not necessarily be limited to:

( a ) operation and use of the ship's inflatable life-rafts;

( b ) problems of hypothermia, first-aid treatment of hypothermia and other appropriate first-aid procedures;

( c ) special instructions necessary for use of the ship's life-saving appliances in severe weather and severe sea conditions; and

( d ) operation and use of fire-extinguishing appliances.

(4) On-board training in the use of davit-launched liferafts shall take place at intervals of not more than four months on every ship fitted with such appliances. Whenever practicable this shall include the inflation and lowering of a liferaft. This liferaft may be a special liferaft intended for training purposes only, which is not part of the ship's life-saving equipment: such a special liferaft shall be conspicuously marked.".

GIVEN under my Official Seal, this 12th day of January, 1993.

MICHAEL WOODS,

Minister for the Marine.

EXPLANATORY NOTE.

These Rules amend the Merchant Shipping (Musters and Training) Rules, 1990 ( S.I. No. 85 of 1990 ) and give effect to amendments to the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea, 1974 adopted on 23 May, 1991 by the International Maritime Organization (IMO). The rules now specify the nature of fire drills, training and instruction of crew in the use of life saving appliances and fire-fighting equipment including davit-launched liferafts.