1 The Maritime Safety Committee, at its fifty-eighth
session (21 to 25 May 1990), adopted by resolution MSC.19(58) amendments
to chapter II-1 of the 1974 SOLAS Convention, as amended, containing
regulations which relate to standards of subdivision and damage stability
for new cargo ships over 100 m in length.
2 Following experience gained using these new
regulations, the Committee agreed that there was a need to provide
guidance to Administrations in order to ensure a uniform application
of the regulations.
3 At the thirty-eighth session of the Sub-Committee
on Stability and Load Lines and on Fishing Vessels Safety (SLF), certain
aspects of these regulations were considered and interpretations thereof
were developed.
4 Recognizing the need for consistent guidance
on this matter, the Committee, at its sixty-third session (16 to 25
May 1994), approved interpretations of the regulations concerned and
invited Member Governments to take account of these interpretations,
as set out in the annex, when applying the requirements of part B-1 of SOLAS chapter II-1.