Question 50 MODU03 - Ballast Control Operator
You are underway in mid-ocean when you hear a distress message. The position of the sender is 150 miles away. No other vessel has acknowledged the distress. Your maximum speed is 5 knots and due to the seriousness of the distress, you cannot arrive on scene to provide effective assistance. What action should you take?
The Correct Answer is B **Explanation for B (Use the signal MAYDAY RELAY and transmit the distress message.):** Option B is correct because under the principles of maritime law and good seamanship, any vessel or station that learns of a distress situation but is unable to render effective assistance must immediately relay the distress message to alert other potentially helpful resources (vessels or shore stations). Since the vessel in the question is 150 miles away and has a maximum speed of only 5 knots (meaning arrival would take 30 hours, likely too late for a serious distress), it cannot provide effective assistance. Therefore, its primary responsibility shifts to ensuring the distress message is received by authorities and vessels that *can* help. The correct procedure for transmitting a distress alert originally sent by another station is to preface the transmission with the signal **MAYDAY RELAY**. **Why the other options are incorrect:** * **A) Do not acknowledge the distress message:** This is incorrect and violates international maritime regulations and the duty to render assistance (or at least ensure help is coming). Every station/vessel must take some action upon hearing a distress call, even if that action is only relaying the message. * **C) Send an urgency message about the distress:** While an urgency message (prefixed with PAN-PAN) is used for situations concerning the safety of the vessel or person, the distress situation described (which likely started with a MAYDAY) is a clear case of grave and imminent danger requiring immediate assistance. Relaying the message using the formal MAYDAY RELAY signal is the correct protocol to maintain the highest priority level for the incident. * **D) Transmit a message as though your vessel was in distress:** This is highly dangerous and illegal. Sending a false distress message (MAYDAY) when your vessel is not in danger severely distracts Search and Rescue (SAR) resources from actual emergencies, misrepresents the situation, and puts your vessel in violation of regulations.
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