2. Explain the following terms.

1. a draught restriction_____________________________________________________________

2. a narrow tidal window____________________________________________________________

3. pre-arrival loading information_____________________________________________________

4. a deck stack__________________________________________________________________

5. under-keel clearance_____________________________________________________________

6. an auto-heeling tank ______________________________________________________

7. a safe even-keel trim_____________________________________________________________

8. a note of protest_________________________________________________________________

3. Decide whether the statements are true (t) or false (f). Correct the wrong ones.

1. A large container vessel was discharging at the final load port before commencing a trans-ocean voyage.___________

2. Pre-arrival loading information listed some 350 containers, most of them going in the deck stacks._________

3. Loading period lasted for 24 hours. ________

4. 850 tonnes of ballast was discharged before sailing from the auto-heeling tanks.__________

5. The ballast was restored in the heeling tanks after reaching deep waters.____________________

4. Decipher the following abbreviations: ukc, sms

5. Choose the factors which could become reasons of danger of the vessel’s grounding in the channel.

1. The draught restriction of the exit channel.

2. A narrow tidal window in the exit channel.

3. Substantial under-declaration in the manifested weights.

4. Ballast discharge from auto-heeling tanks

6. Complete an incident report (see annex) covering the following items.

1. Description of the situation;

2. Direct, root causes of the situation;

3. Remedial actions and recommendations.

Case study - 3. Containers Overboard

Changes to the SOLAS Convention now require shippers to ensure containers are weighed before loaded on vessels. A recent incident highlights the importance of this amendment.

6 containers had apparently gone missing while on route. The stack in question was located at the bow of the vessel on the very edge and had clearly been lost overboard during the voyage. Apparently, neither the Captain nor chief officer or crew were aware of what had occurred at the time.

It transpired that the stowage plan had been created using weights provided at the initial time of booking. While the final bills corrected the weights, this was never picked up by the planners, which resulted in the vessel being stacked incorrectly. The top 4 containers, all loaded with cement, were 28 tonnes each. The 2 bottom containers were only 5 and 3 tonnes respectively. This meant that the total weight for that stack was 143 tonnes, as opposed to the 50 tonnes permitted by the Cargo Securing Manual, as well as being top-heavy and unstable.

1. Answer the questions.

1. What changes concerning containers carriage were recently added to the SOLAS Convention?

2. What happened to 6 containers on route?

3. Where had the missing containers been located?

4. How was the stowage plan created?

5. What resulted in the vessel being stacked incorrectly?

6. What was the total weight of the stack in question?

7. What weight is allowed by the Cargo Securing Manual?