Regulation 22 - Prevention and control of water ingress, etc.
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Regulation 22 - Prevention and control of water ingress, etc.

  1 All watertight doors shall be kept closed during navigation except that they may be opened during navigation as specified in paragraph 3. Watertight doors of a width of more than 1.2 m in machinery spaces as permitted by regulation 13.10 may only be opened in the circumstances detailed in that regulation. Any door which is opened in accordance with this paragraph shall be ready to be immediately closed.

  2 Watertight doors located below the bulkhead deck of passenger ships and the freeboard deck of cargo ships having a maximum clear opening width of more than 1.2 m shall be kept closed during navigation, except for limited periods when absolutely necessary as determined by the Administration.

  3 A watertight door may be opened during navigation to permit the passage of passengers or crew, or when work in the immediate vicinity of the door necessitates it being opened. The door must be immediately closed when transit through the door is complete or when the task which necessitated it being open is finished. The Administration shall authorize that such a watertight door may be opened during navigation only after careful consideration of the impact on ship operations and survivability taking into account guidance issued by the Organizationfootnote. A watertight door permitted to be opened during navigation shall be clearly indicated in the ship's stability information and shall always be ready to be immediately closed.

  4 Portable plates on bulkheads shall always be in place before the voyage commences, and shall not be removed during navigation except in case of urgent necessity at the discretion of the master. The necessary precautions shall be taken in replacing them to ensure that the joints are watertight. Power-operated sliding watertight doors permitted in machinery spaces in accordance with regulation 13.10 shall be closed before the voyage commences and shall remain closed during navigation except in case of urgent necessity at the discretion of the master.

  5 Watertight doors fitted in watertight bulkheads dividing cargo between deck spaces in accordance with regulation 13.9.1 shall be closed before the voyage commences and shall be kept closed during navigation. The time at which such doors are opened or closed shall be recorded in such log-book as may be prescribed by the Administration.

  6 Gangway, cargo and fuelling ports fitted below the bulkhead deck of passenger ships and the freeboard deck of cargo ships shall be effectively closed and secured watertight before voyage commences, and shall be kept closed during navigation.

  7 The following doors, located above the bulkhead deck of passenger ships and the freeboard deck of cargo ships, shall be closed and locked before the voyage commences and shall remain closed and locked until the ship is at its next berth:

  • .1 cargo loading doors in the shell or the boundaries of enclosed superstructures;

  • .2 bow visors fitted in positions as indicated in paragraph 7.1;

  • .3 cargo loading doors in the collision bulkhead; and

  • .4 ramps forming an alternative closure to those defined in paragraphs 7.1 to 7.3 inclusive.

  8 Where a door cannot be opened or closed while the ship is at the berth, such a door may be opened or left open while the ship approaches or draws away from the berth, but only so far as may be necessary to enable the door to be immediately operated. In any case, the inner bow door must be kept closed.

  9 Notwithstanding the requirements of paragraphs 7.1 and 7.4, the Administration may authorize that particular doors can be opened at the discretion of the master, if necessary for the operation of the ship or the embarking and disembarking of passengers when the ship is at safe anchorage and provided that the safety of the ship is not impaired.

  10 The master shall ensure that an effective system of supervision and reporting of the closing and opening of the doors referred to in paragraph 7 is implemented.

  11 The master shall ensure, before any voyage commences, that an entry in such log-book as may be prescribed by the Administration is made of the time the doors specified in paragraph 12 are closed and the time at which particular doors are opened in accordance with paragraph 13.

  12 Hinged doors, portable plates, sidescuttles, gangway, cargo and bunkering ports and other openings, which are required by these regulations to be kept closed during navigation, shall be closed before the voyage commences. The time at which such doors are opened and closed (if permissible under these regulations) shall be recorded in such log-book as may be prescribed by the Administration.

  13 Where in a between-deck, the sills of any of the sidescuttles referred to in regulation 15.3.2 are below a line drawn parallel to the bulkhead deck at side of passenger ships and the freeboard deck at side of cargo ships, and having its lowest point 1.4 m plus 2.5% of the breadth of the ship above the water when the voyage commences, all the sidescuttles in that between-deck shall be closed watertight and locked before the voyage commences, and they shall not be opened before the ship arrives at the next port. In the application of this paragraph the appropriate allowance for fresh water may be made when applicable.

  • .1 The time at which such sidescuttles are opened in port and closed and locked before the voyage commences shall be recorded in such log-book as may be prescribed by the Administration.

  • .2 For any ship that has one or more sidescuttles so placed that the requirements of paragraph 13 would apply when it was floating at its deepest subdivision draught, the Administration may indicate the limiting mean draught at which these sidescuttles will have their sills above the line drawn parallel to the bulkhead deck at side of passenger ships and the freeboard deck at side of cargo ships, and having its lowest point 1.4 m plus 2.5% of the breadth of the ship above the waterline corresponding to the limiting mean draught, and at which it will therefore be permissible for the voyage to commence without them being closed and locked and to be opened during navigation on the responsibility of the master during navigation. In tropical zones as defined in the International Convention on Load Lines in force, this limiting draught may be increased by 0.3 m.

  14 Sidescuttles and their deadlights which will not be accessible during navigation shall be closed and secured before the voyage commences.

  15 If cargo is carried in spaces referred to in regulation 15.5.2, the sidescuttles and their deadlights shall be closed watertight and locked before the cargo is shipped and the time at which such scuttles and deadlights are closed and locked shall be recorded in such log-book as may be prescribed by the Administration.

  16 When a rubbish-chute, etc., is not in use, both the cover and the valve required by regulation 15.10.2 shall be kept closed and secured.

Parent topic: Part B-4 - Stability Management
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