Question 14 ONC07 - OUPV-Near Coastal

The Correct Answer is C ### Why Option C is Correct: Option C, **reduce your speed to bare steerageway**, is the correct action required by the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea (COLREGs), specifically Rule 19 (Conduct of Vessels in Restricted Visibility). Rule 19(e) states that if a vessel detects the presence of another vessel by radar alone (or by sound, as the fog signal indicates here) and determines that a close-quarters situation is developing or risk of collision exists, it shall take timely action. Crucially, if that action is an alteration of course, it should be avoided if possible until the approaching vessel is sighted. Furthermore, Rule 19(b) states that every vessel shall proceed at a safe speed adapted to the prevailing circumstances and conditions of restricted visibility, and a power-driven vessel shall have its engines ready for immediate maneuver. If you hear a vessel forward of the beam and risk of collision exists, the most prudent and required immediate action is to take way off the vessel (slow down or stop engines) until the situation is clearly understood and the other vessel's position is ascertained visually or confirmed by other means. Reducing speed to bare steerageway allows the vessel to maintain control while minimizing the distance traveled toward the potential danger, complying with the requirement to stop engines and navigate with caution. ### Why Other Options Are Incorrect: **A) alter course to port to pass the other vessel on its port side:** This action is explicitly discouraged under Rule 19(d)(i). In restricted visibility, a vessel hearing a fog signal forward of the beam should *not* make an alteration of course to port for a vessel forward of the beam, especially before determining the precise location and intentions of the other vessel. Such an alteration could lead directly into the path of the other vessel (the "bad turn"). **B) alter course to starboard to pass around the other vessel:** While an alteration to starboard is usually the appropriate action in clear visibility (Rule 15 - Crossing Situation), in restricted visibility, Rule 19 cautions against any course alteration until the situation is fully assessed or the other vessel is sighted. Altering course based only on a bearing from a fog signal is dangerous because the relative position, speed, and course of the other vessel are unknown. **D) slow your engines and let the other vessel pass ahead of you:** While slowing the engines is part of the correct maneuver, this option implies you are actively maneuvering to let the other vessel pass. The safest and required immediate action in restricted visibility, when hearing a signal forward of the beam, is to reduce speed as much as possible—often meaning stopping engines entirely—to kill headway and assess the situation, rather than attempting to predict the other vessel's movement and maneuver around it. Reducing speed to **bare steerageway** (Option C) or stopping entirely is the precise requirement under Rule 19(e) until the risk is past. Option D is a less comprehensive and less mandatory action than the requirement to reduce to bare steerageway/stop.