Safe at Sea: Numerous precautions keep maritime vessels, passengers in check.

• Author: Orr, Vanessa
• Position: TRANSPORTATION

It would be almost impossible to live in Alaska without maritime vessels, and while there are different regulations for different types of boats, all of them must meet certain standards to be considered seaworthy and to ensure the safety of crew and passengers.

"Commercial vessels like fishing boats, crude oil-carrying tankships, tugboats, and cruise ships all fall under different sets of safety regulations, and it can get a little murky depending on the industry," explains Mike LaBarge, assistant professor of maritime studies, UAS Ketchikan, whose background includes fifteen years in the maritime industry as a captain and dive instructor. "Private vessels, which are not considered 'inspected passenger vessels' by the US Coast Guard, don't have to follow such stringent rules."

If a ship is considered an inspected passenger vessel, it is required to go through annual Coast Guard inspections and drills.

The Coast Guard will come on board on a regular basis to do vessel stability inspections that determine how many passengers can be on board and where they can be," says LaBarge. "If a vessel has two decks and is qualified to have 100 passengers, for example, they determine if all of those passengers can be safely on the upper deck, or if the vessel needs to limit the number of people or set a weight limit,"

The Coast Guard also does regular inspections to determine the integrity of vessels, including thru null checks to make sure that systems are operating as they should. "If there's a problem, such as worn fittings or seals, they need to be replaced before the ship will be allowed to get underway, which typically involves pulling the boat out of the water," says LaBarge.

Inspected passenger vessels are required to make sure that crews are properly trained and are mandated to hold drills once a month in firefighting, flooding, man overboard, abandon ship, and more.

"The goal is to train muscle memory, so if a fire breaks out or there is a man overboard, crew members automatically know what to do," says LaBarge, adding that the Coast Guard will have crews perform these drills during annual inspections to make sure they are prepared.

Inspections also include making sure that all required lifesaving equipment is on board and appropriate types of life vests are available for passengers and crew members, including children if necessary. Equipment must also be appropriate for the type of water in which the ship is sailing.

"Depending on the vessel's...