Pre-departure Familiarization

Ship Familiarization

• When a new crew member signs onto the vessel, they should be promptly familiarized with the vessel.
• As part of ship familiarization, new crew members should be made aware of several elements key to ship safety:
  • The crew member’s muster station
  • Which emergency duties they are responsible for
  • What the evacuation plan for the vessel looks like
  • Which safety equipment is onboard and where it’s located
  • Pollution prevention procedures and other operational procedures
  • Security protocols and guidelines on how to handle visitors to the vessel

Muster Stations

• A muster station is a designated location on a vessel where passengers and crew are required to gather in the event of an emergency. The purpose of a muster station is to ensure that everyone onboard the vessel knows where to go and what to do in the event of an emergency, such as a fire, collision, or abandon ship situation.
• As part of its regulatory responsibilities, Transport Canada requires vessels to have emergency procedures and evacuation plans in place, including the posting of muster stations and emergency duties.  These may be posted in cabins aboard the vessel or prominently in a common area of the ship.
• The location of the muster station may vary depending on the vessel and the type of emergency. In most cases, the muster station will be a specific deck or area of the vessel, and it will be clearly marked with signs and/or designated by a specific alarm signal.

Emergency Duties

• In the event of an emergency, there are different duties that crew members are responsible for.  These will depend on the nature of the emergency, as in a fire emergency or an abandon ship emergency.
• These emergency duties should be made clear during the ship familiarization and should be posted prominently aboard the ship.  These are typically listed on the Emergency Duties Card that lists specific emergency duties and emergency stations that the crew member should muster to in the event of an emergency.
• In the case of a fire emergency for example, duties may include donning fire gear, preparing a water pump, readying a fire hose, and preparing to fight a fire.  Note that hotwork (activities that involve operations that generate heat, sparks, or flame, such as welding, cutting, grinding, or soldering) is the most common source of fires.

Pre-departure checklists

• Ships will have an existing checklist of things that need to be done prior to departure.  This isn’t standardized and varies from ship to ship.  Some of these checks include:
  • Ensuring steering pumps and auxiliary pumps are on.
  • Test steering by going hard over port and starboard.
  • Testing different steering stations.
  • Test emergency steering. (Emergency steering station is typically located at the stern, close to the steering flat)
  • Test navigation light activation.
  • Bump test / propulsion test. (briefly clutching ahead and then astern on each prop)
  • Ensuring cargo is stowed or lashed down prior to departure.
  • Ship is singled up.  (All mooring lines except the bow and stern line are free)
  • VHF checks / informing shoreside of departure.
• If the ship is leaving port for the first time since undergoing a refit, sea trials may be required.  Sea trials represent a trial voyage whereby the crew tests the ship’s capabilities.  Seas trials are important to ensure  that the ship meets the correct specifications and tests the quality of the work performed.