Open porthole
- Safety Flash
- Published on 1 March 2004
- Generated on 13 February 2026
- IMCA SF 02/04
- 2 minute read
A Member has reported the following incident which occurred onboard one of its vessels.
What happened?
The vessel was sailing in 6 - 8ft swell and 35kts wind speed, when it was noticed that one of the accommodation cabins was flooding with water. Upon opening the cabin door, it was noticed that water was entering the cabin from an open porthole.
The duty seaman immediately switched off the power supply to the accommodation cabins in order to prevent any short circuiting of the electrical system and possible fire. He also closed the porthole immediately.
The company’s basic sailing procedures require that ‘all portholes be securely closed when sailing’ irrespective of the weather conditions. This procedure was not followed.
The company has issued a reminder as follows:
Responsibility and Authority of The Vessel Master – A Reminder
The vessel master has the ultimate responsibility to ensure the safety of the vessel.
- He is responsible for ensuring through HSE meetings, training, familiarisation etc., that all personnel (including passengers) onboard the vessel, understand the safety procedures & instructions as per SOLAS and other relevant requirements, to be followed on the vessel, and to ensure that they strictly follow all such safety instructions.
- He has the authority to carry out regular checks/inspections to ensure that all necessary safety instructions & procedures are being followed.
- He also has the authority to take disciplinary action as necessary, against those personnel onboard the vessel who do not follow necessary safety instructions & procedures, and put the vessel at risk.
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