PSC deficiency code 11104: Rescue boats

Code 11104 covers the rescue boat: the boat, its engine, its hook and the equipment it must carry. It's the boat the crew will use to recover a person from the water, so inspectors focus on whether it can be launched and running within minutes.

What the inspector looks at

• the engine starts quickly, outboard or inboard, with fresh fuel in the tank
• inflatable or rigid-inflatable boats: tube condition, pressure, valves, repair patches
• release hook and lifting arrangement, and that the crew know how to operate it
• the equipment set: paddles, bailer, knife, painter, towline, searchlight, first aid kit and the rest of the required inventory
• stowage: the boat ready, not covered with lashings that take a long time to clear
• launching and recovery with the single-arm davit (often checked with the boat)
• records of weekly and monthly inspections, launch drills and annual servicing

Common findings

• Rescue boat engine failed to start
• Outboard motor fuel tank empty / stale fuel
• Inflatable rescue boat tubes losing pressure
• Release hook seized or not operable
• Equipment missing: towline, searchlight, first aid kit
• Rescue boat not launched and manoeuvred in the water at the required interval
• Annual service of inflatable rescue boat overdue

The rule behind it

SOLAS chapter III sets the requirement to carry a rescue boat, and its regulations on drills (regulation 19) and maintenance and inspection (regulation 20) apply to it as they do to lifeboats. Construction, engines and equipment are covered by the LSA Code, chapter V. Thorough examination and testing of rescue boats and their launching appliances follow IMO resolution MSC.402(96), made mandatory through SOLAS chapter III. Day-to-day upkeep falls under the ship's ISM procedures.

Action codes you are likely to see

A rescue boat that can't be launched or won't run can be a ground for detention (30), particularly on a cargo ship where it may be the only boat ready for man overboard recovery. Missing equipment or a gap in drill records more often gets 17 or 16. Small items fixed on the spot can be 10. See action taken codes.

How to close it

Repair the engine or hook, or bring in an authorised service provider for inflatable tube repairs and release gear, and keep the service report. Replace missing equipment and update the inventory. Demonstrate the engine start and, if asked, launch and recover the boat with its crew, then record it as a drill. File the service report, receipts and drill record with the Form B.