Question 1005 Rules of the Road

The correct answer is B) No fog signal is required. According to the Inland Navigation Rules and the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea (COLREGS), the first vessel of a tow is not required to sound any fog signal when towing manned barges. The rules state that only the last vessel of the tow is required to sound the appropriate fog signal, which is one prolonged blast followed by two short blasts at intervals of not more than 2 minutes. The other answer choices are incorrect because they do not accurately reflect the fog signal requirements for the lead vessel in a tow. Sounding a signal of one prolonged, one short, and one prolonged blast (option A) or one prolonged and three short blasts (option C) would not be the correct signal for the first vessel in the tow. Option D, one short blast, is also incorrect as it does not match the required fog signal for any vessel in a tow.