Shipping the world over is notorious for experiencing the unusual and the unexpected.
In most cases if and when routine practice goes wrong, the weather is usually a key element
which influences the cause and very often the outcome. The other variable is
often the human element which can work for, or against, the well being of the ship.
The loss of engines when off the lee shore is the classic nightmare of any ship’s
Master. Equally, the steering control of a ship could be lost. In either case, the root
cause may often be traced back to wear and tear or lack of affective maintenance.
When coupled with heavy weather, it can easily run to a comedy of errors, ending in
a total constructive loss.
Good seamanship to one man is perceived differently by another. Improvisation,
with a ‘jury rudder’ could well save the day, but the use of a high-powered tug
could be a more viable and confident alternative to take the vessel out of danger.
The marine environment has never been in a situation to be able to dial the emergency
services. Ships have had to sustain themselves in all manner of emergencies
close to or far out from the nearest land.
The man overboard, the grounding, or the collision, could all require the expertise
of emergency ship handling procedures to sustain life and protect the environment.
Such incidents need to be tackled with experience, seamanship-like practice and,
very often, with an ample portion of common sense. The experienced ship handler
has skills considered essential in many emergency situations, even if it is only turning
the stern to the wind with a fire on board.
With some forethought it is clear that most incidents can be accommodated with
pre-planning, and it is the function of this chapter to highlight typical incidents that
may be useful within emergency plans and checklists. An active response will often
require the combined skills of on-board personnel, engineers, fire fighters and the
ship’s handler as a typical example; the outcome being directly related to the safety
of life at sea and the best manner in which to provide a protective shield.
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When things do go wrong the ramifications to passengers, crew and the environment
can be catastrophic. It is at these times that the real art of seamanship must
come to the fore and hopefully the correct action would lead to recouping any
adverse situation.