SV-EOOW-L4.2

Engine-room safety, emergencies and pollution

The watchkeeper protects the ship from engine-room fire, flooding and pollution, and leads the first response. This lesson covers safety, emergencies and MARPOL at operational level.

Safety and emergency response

  • Control the engine-room hazards and apply safe systems of work and isolation before maintenance.
  • Respond to an engine-room fire — isolate the fuel with the quick-closing valves, stop machinery and ventilation, and use the fixed system per procedure.
  • Respond to flooding — start bilge and emergency pumping and stop the ingress if possible.
  • Understand the firefighting and detection arrangements and keep the escape routes clear.

Pollution prevention

Engine-room flooding response

  1. Raise the alarm and identify the source of the water.
  2. Start the bilge or emergency pumping, and stop the ingress if possible by isolating the pipe or valve or plugging the hole.
  3. Inform the bridge, and prepare additional pumping and damage-control measures.
  4. Monitor the level, and be ready to escalate if the ingress exceeds the pumping capacity.

WARNING — Seal the space before releasing the fixed system Before releasing a fixed firefighting medium, stop the machinery and ventilation, isolate the fuel, get everyone out and close the space. Releasing it into an open, running space wastes it and endangers people inside.

NOTE — Oily water and waste oil go ashore Bilge water is cleaned through the oily-water separator to the legal limit before any discharge, and waste oil and used filters are landed ashore. Illegal oil discharge is a serious offence.

Practice questions

5 questions
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On discovering engine-room flooding, an early action is to: (a) Do nothing until the end of watch (b) Raise the alarm, start pumping and try to stop the ingress (c) Open more seacocks (d) Switch off the bilge alarm

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Before releasing a fixed firefighting medium into the engine room you must: (a) Increase ventilation (b) Stop machinery, isolate fuel, evacuate and close the space (c) Open the doors (d) Refuel

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Bilge water discharged overboard must: (a) Be untreated (b) Have passed through the oily-water separator to below the legal oil limit (c) Be full of oil (d) Be ignored

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Before maintenance on machinery, the engineer applies: (a) No precautions (b) Safe systems of work — isolation and lock-off (c) Full power (d) More fuel

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Waste oil and used oil filters should be: (a) Pumped overboard (b) Landed ashore for proper disposal (c) Burnt in the bilge (d) Left in the space

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