Austin Deasy
Ceist:97 Mr. Deasy asked the Minister for the Marine the frequency with which safety checks are carried out on car ferries.
Written Answers. - Car Ferry Safety Checks.
As Minister with responsibility for safety at sea, it is my objective to achieve the best standard practices for safety on board ferries operating in and out of Ireland.
Irish registered ferries are required to undergo a rigorous annual inspection by my Department's Marine Survey Office for the renewal of their Passenger and Safety Certificates. This involves dry-docking the vessel and a very thorough inspection of the vessel's bottom, hull, structure and all watertight doors and closing appliances on board. The vessel's life-saving appliances and fire-fighting appliances are examined and tested where necessary. Tanks and other enclosed spaces are opened out and inspected as part of an on-going survey programme. The vessel's lifeboats are inspected in detail and liferafts on board are sent ashore for servicing. Lifejackets are also examined. All signs indicating to passengers what to do or where to assemble in an emergency are checked, examined and replaced, as necessary.
In Ireland, it is the policy of my Department that foreign-registered vessels providing a regular service using Irish ports are also subjected to inspection, carried out at least once a year, under the Port State Control mechanism. Port State Control is carried out by a number of European countries under a Memorandum of Understanding on Port State Control inaugurated in Paris in 1982.
Port State Control involves,inter alia, inspection of vessels' Safety Convention Certificates relating to Ship Construction, Loadlines, Safety Equipment, Oil Pollution, Manning. The inspection includes a detailed examination of the vessel, its bridge, charts, nautical publications, life-saving appliances, fire-fighting appliances, ship's accommodation, store rooms, galley, engine room and ancillary spaces. The vessel decks, cargo equipment, mooring arrangements etc. are also checked in detail.
Foreign registered ferries, providing a once off or a short term relief service are required to be in compliance with the standards laid down in the relevant International Conventions. These Conventions are:—
—the International Convention on Load Lines, 1966;
—the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea, 1974, as amended by the Protocol of 1978;
—the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships, 1973, as modified by the Protocol of 1978 relating thereto;
—the International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers, 1978;
—the Convention on the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea, 1972;
—the Merchant Shipping (Minimum Standards) Convention, 1976 (ILO Convention No. 147).
Where my Marine Surveyors have reason to believe that any ferry operating to an Irish port may be unsafe, an immediate inspection is carried out, regardless of flag administration.