The Bahamas Maritime Authority issued a technical alert related to detentions and deficiencies found during USCG examination of cruise ships in 2016. During 2016, USCG reported a total of 103 detentions, of which 3 were cruise ships.
The deficiencies which led to the detention of cruise ships in 2016 are listed below. It should be noted that the detentions may have been for more than one individual deficiency:
- Liferafts with painter incorrectly fastened to the hydrostatic release unit, preventing float free operation;
- The sliding fire doors on various decks were unable to close during transitional power test;
- Emergency generator was unable to start automatically;
- Engine room watertight doors unable to open by electric power;
- Rescue boat was unable to maintain idle speed without throttle assistance.
The five most common USCG deficiencies on cruise ships in 2016, listed below, were not the cause of detentions, however it should be noted that an accumulation of large numbers of deficiencies may result in a ship being detained under the ISM Code:
- Fire screen doors not operating correctly and were found to have damage to the sequence bars, damage to the doors themselves or not closing
properly; - Impeding means of escape. Corridors, doors and hatches in area designated as escape route were found to be either partially or completely blocked;
- Low location lighting or photoluminescent tape was found to be missing or inoperable;
- Various deficiencies were found on fire suppression systems, including fixed firefighting systems.
- There were several deficiencies issued for leaking piping systems which led to fuel soaked insulation lagging.
BMA urges operators to take note of the above deficiencies and ensure that there ships are fully prepared for any PSC inspection.
