S.I. No. 392/1992:

MERCHANT SHIPPING (EMERGENCY INFORMATION FOR PASSENGERS) RULES, 1992.

MERCHANT SHIPPING (EMERGENCY INFORMATION FOR PASSENGERS) RULES, 1992.

I, MICHAEL WOODS, Minister for the Marine, in exercise of the powers conferred on me by section 427 of the Merchant Shipping Act, 1894 (inserted by section 11 of the Merchant Shipping (Safety Convention) Act, 1952 (No. 29 of 1952)), as amended by section 10 of the Merchant Shipping Act, 1966 (No. 20 of 1966), and the Communications (Transfer of Departmental Administration and Ministerial Functions) Order, 1987 ( S.I. No. 91 of 1987 ), hereby make the following Rules:

1. (1) These Rules may be cited as the Merchant Shipping (Emergency Information for Passengers) Rules, 1992 and shall come into operation on the 14th day of December, 1992.

(2) In these Rules--

"the Minister" means the Minister for the Marine;

"passenger ship" means a ship carrying more than 12 passengers of Class I, II, II(A), III, IV, V or VI and to which section 427 of the Merchant Shipping Act, 1894, applies;

"voyage" includes and excursion.

(3) A reference in these Rules to a numbered class, or a numbered and lettered class, of ship is a reference to such a class of ship within the meaning of the Merchant Shipping (Fire Protection) Rules, 1985 ( S.I. No. 279 of 1985 ).

2. (1) Subject to paragraph (2) of this Rule, a passenger ship that is certified under the Merchant Shipping Acts, 1894 to 1992, to carry more than 20 passengers shall be provided with a public address system.

(2) In lieu of complying with the requirement of paragraph (1) of this Rule, a passenger ship of Class V or VI that is an open ship may carry a portable loud hailer.

(3) A broadcast made on the public address system required to be provided on a passenger ship by paragraph (1) of this Rule shall be capable of being heard in all public spaces of the ship, including open decks, to which passengers hava access.

3. (1) Subject to paragraph (2) of this rule, if a muster of the passengers is not held on the commencement of a passenger ship on a voyage, the attention of the passengers on the ship shall be drawn by means of an announcement at the commencement of the voyage to the emergency instructions required by paragraphs (9) and (10) of Rule 4 of the Merchant Shipping (Musters and Training) Rules, 1990 ( S.I. No. 85 of 1990 ).

(2) In the case of a passenger ship of Class IV, V or VI--

( a ) passengers shall be informed by means of an announcement at the commencement of a voyage of the action they should take in the event of an emergency which could lead to the ship being abandoned;

( b ) notices providing instructions for passengers as to the action they should take in the event of an emergency as aforesaid shall be displayed in each passenger compartment.

4. (1) All doors of a passenger ship provided for passenger use and leading from passenger compartments to open decks shall be clearly indicated with one or more signs marked "EXIT".

(2) All doors, windows, side scuttles and other openings of a passenger ship provided for emergency escape purposes shall be clearly indicated with one or more signs marked "EMERGENCY ESCAPE DOOR" or "EMERGENCY ESCAPE WINDOW", as appropriate.

(3) This Rule shall not apply to an open or partially decked passenger ship of Class V or VI.

5. (1) The Minister may exempt from all or any of the provisions of these Rules (which shall be specified in the exemption), on such terms (if any) specified by him in the exemption, any class of passenger ship defined by him for the purposes of this Rule if he is satisfied that compliance with such provisions or provision is either impracticable or unreasonable in the case of that class of ship.

(2) The Minister may, subject to giving reasonable notice to the person concerned, amend or revoke an aforesaid exemption.

GIVEN under my Official Seal, this 14th day of December, 1992.

MICHAEL WOODS,

Minister for the Marine.

EXPLANATORY NOTE.

These Rules require all passenger ships registered in the State which are certified to carry more than 20 passengers to be provided with a public address system. Open ships of Classes V and VI may be provided with a portable loud hailer in lieu of such a system. The Rules also require the attention of passengers on passenger ships to be drawn to the passenger emergency instructions, when a muster is not held on departure, and require passengers on ships of Classes IV, V and VI to be given safety information at the commencement of each voyage.

The Rules also require normal and emergency exits leading from the interior of the ship to be clearly marked.