Fire presents a serious threat aboard vessels. It can spread quickly and cause extensive damage, putting the lives of crew members at risk. That's why it's essential for ships to have adequate fire fighting equipment on board. The type of extinguishing equipment...
Ship Knowledge Articles
Navigating Different Types of Marine Insurance & Their Coverage
There are many types of marine insurance addressed to specific risks and protect different interests within the shipping industry. If you’re familiar with the Suez Canal Blockade of Ever Given, it triggered many marine insurance policies that even today,...
8 Ways to Check the Gyro Error of Your Gyro Compass
When I was a deck cadet watching on the bridge, the Chief Officer was admiring the beautiful afternoon sun. Surely, this was a hint. I already had an idea that he wants me to check for our gyro error. Since then, I’ve been checking gyro errors and compass errors and...
10 Things You Need to Know About Marine Insurance
I came across the true concept of marine insurance when I was a cadet on my first ship. We unexpectedly went to an emergency drydock due to rudder damage. This would have been a very painful financial blow to the shipowners considering that the same ship finished her...
Key Elements and Basic Principles of Celestial Navigation
I have mad respect for our early sailors who brave the seas and rely on celestial navigation to find their way. More than anyone else, these seafarers heavily studied and understood this subject matter to conquer the unknown. Back in the day, before fancy GPS and...
What is a Marine Sextant and How Does it Work?
The marine sextant is one of those instruments that stood the test of time. It is a very reliable tool for seafarers and navigators crossing the seven oceans even before the introduction of electronic navigation. Even with today’s global positioning system or GPS,...
34 Essential Lifeboat Equipment Items According to SOLAS
When it comes to emergency situations at sea, a properly equipped lifeboat can be the difference between life and death. The International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) sets the standard for lifeboat equipment as well as safety items required on...
What’s Your Liferaft Equipment Packs, SOLAS A or SOLAS B?
A liferaft is a vital piece of safety equipment on board a ship that can provide refuge for crew members in the event of an emergency. It is one of those survival crafts that seafarers use during an abandon ship situation. In order to ensure the survivability of those...
Ship Security Alert System – The Silent Alarm That We Need
A few days ago, we talked about the ship's emergency alarms and how bombastic, disturbing, and noisy they are. It should be that way since it's an alert system. In case something terrible happens, everyone on board knows what to do. So here's something to blow your...
Emergency Generator on Ships – What No One Tells You
Having power and electricity is vital for ships to function at sea. It does not matter if it is a small yacht or a huge supertanker. They need energy to run and reach their destination safely. Hence, seafarers perform maintenance schedules for all the machinery and...
Types of Bulk Carriers by Design, Sizes, and Regional Trades
After hearing my seafarer friend talk about his interview on the different types of bulk carriers, I became confused and even questioned my understanding of those ships. It's not because I'm a tanker guy that I failed to comprehend what they meant. It's just that the...
What To Do When You Hear a Man Overboard Alarm
What’s the big deal when a person falls into the water? If you are a seaman, you can just swim to the nearest shore, right? Or you can wait for the ship to turn around and pick you up. But that is not the case. As a matter of priority, a man overboard alarm signal is...
Ship’s Safety Drills Vs. Real Emergency: What They Don’t Tell You
At one point in our seafaring career, we all experience emergencies in one form or another. My first was a fire in the swimming pool while discharging gasoline in the Port of Amsterdam. Fortunately, I managed to survive and live on to tell the tale. Nobody knows what...
What are the Types of Ship’s Emergency Alarm Signals?
Would you rather have a healthy, restful sleep and wake up in a pool of water, or be disturbed by a menacing alarm during your sweetest dreams? If you are on board, you don't really have a choice. Like it or not, emergency alarms are the number one priority to respond...
SIRE 2.0 Will Upgrade Your Vetting Experience. Are You Ready?
A new inspection regime, called SIRE 2.0, will be served to all tanker vessels in the 4th quarter of 2022. According to OCIMF, this modern approach to vetting inspection will have significant improvements compared to the current version of SIRE. But we still don't...
How to Prevent Accidents Involving Combination Ladders
A ship's combination ladder is a setup where a pilot ladder is used in conjunction with an accommodation ladder to facilitate the embarkation and disembarkation of marine pilots. Since ladders are the only means of access on board, their proper rigging is always an...
What is an Embarkation Ladder and How is it Used?
I must admit. Embarkation ladders were one of the most confusing nautical terms I encountered in school. These two words, simple as they are when separated, got me puzzled when combined. Partly because, the term "embarkation" in the most nautical sense, usually...
7 Steps on How to Rig an Accommodation Ladder Safely
Accommodation ladders connect the ship to shore personnel. Though fixed in position, they are versatile enough to be used in harbors, anchorage areas, or even at sea while the vessel is underway. Proper safety awareness and correct procedures in rigging an...
What is an Accommodation Ladder? Regulations, Parts, Maintenance
One of the safest means of accessing a ship is through the use of an accommodation ladder. It is also the most convenient and the most preferred method of many sea folks. Whether at the anchorage or sea, these ladders had proven their usefulness on board. They fit...
There’s Only One Correct Way To Rig a Pilot Ladder and It’s This
You might be rigging pilot ladders for many years already without knowing that your methods may not be correct. As a matter of fact, the International Maritime Pilots’ Association (IMPA) studied 3,322 pilot boarding arrangements and discovered that 13.43% of them are...
Maritime Dictionary – Everything that Starts with Letter “E”
E - Code flag; I am altering my course to starboard. Sound signal; I am altering my course to starboard. 'E' - Time value that represents the westerly hour angle of a heavenly body from the point of definition of mean time. Local mean time added to 'E' is hour angle...
Maritime Dictionary – Everything that Starts with “A”
A - When applied to a temperature, denotes that it has been measured from Absolute zero and is expressed in Centigrade or Celsius units. A - Code flag; Diver below, keep well clear at slow speed. A - Morse Code Alpha. ● ▬A.1. - Classification symbol denoting character...
Types of Lifeboats and Their Launching Mechanisms
There are many different types of lifeboats that merchant vessels use today. It is a vital safety appliance on board that it is mandatory to have them. That said, ships with no lifeboats, or have defective ones, are unseaworthy. Your ship may have the perfect...
What are Fire Wires Or Emergency Towing-Off Pennants
Emergency towing-off pennant or commonly known as “fire wire” is a long wire deployed on the side of a tanker ship. One end is firmly secured on the bitts while its eye on the other end is hanging one to two meters above the water line. Ships use fire wires...
What is the Difference Between SOPEP and SMPEP?
When it comes to the prevention of marine pollution, SOPEP and SMPEP are at the top of the list. They are the vessel’s response plans and procedures in case you have a spill on board. You might have seen those big (sometimes small) yellow boxes on deck marked with...
What is a Notice of Readiness or NOR
Ships operate under specific rules of business. One of the terms you most often hear on board is N.O.R. or Notice of Readiness. This term is normally tossed over when the ship arrives in port either at the anchorage or in berth. I was a cadet back then when I...