Question 1772 Deck Safety

A) In calm seas lower the lifeboats to the water and keep them alongside. This is the correct answer. Lowering the lifeboats to the water and keeping them alongside the vessel will improve stability by increasing the vessel's metacentric height (GM). The lifeboats act as external weights that increase the vessel's stability. The other options are incorrect because: B) Rigging the jumbo boom and jettisoning heavy deck cargo would reduce the vessel's total weight, but would not directly address the stability issues described. C) Pumping out the peak tanks would not improve stability if there is no trim, and the vessel's freeboard is already reduced. D) Pressing up a centerline double bottom at 15% capacity would not significantly improve stability in this scenario.