Question 1203 Deck Safety

The correct answer is C) pulling on the painter line. When a liferaft is thrown into the water, the painter line is used to automatically inflate the liferaft. The painter line is attached to a mechanism inside the liferaft container that triggers the CO2 inflation system when the line is pulled. This ensures the liferaft inflates as soon as it hits the water, without requiring any additional steps. The other options are incorrect because: A) the hand pump is used to top up the liferaft's pressure after inflation, not to initially inflate it; B) the hydrostatic release is used to automatically release the liferaft from its stowage in an emergency, not to inflate it; and D) forcibly opening the container would damage the inflation mechanism.