SOME POINTS TO NOTE DURING MOORING AND UNMOORING OPERATIONS

 Items to note about Deck Work and Mooring / Unmooring Operations

In order to prevent trouble during mooring / unmooring operations, the following points regarding deck work should be noted and followed:

Ø  Fully understand the potential range of the “Snap-Back”, and do not rashly approach the mooring lines and the tag lines when they are under the tension.

Ø  Do not stand too close to a winch drum or bollard when holding and tensioning a line.

Ø  Crew who operate mooring/unmooring winches should understand how to control them, and should always be in visual contact with the officer or person in charge, so they can easily receive their instructions.

Ø  Do not leave winches running unattended.

Ø  Do not leave loose objects in the line handling area.

Ø  Crew who work in mooring/unmooring operations on deck should use a transceiver, and whistle effectively.

Ø  Officers who work on the deck should maintain good communication with the Captain on the bridge. They should constantly confirm to each other the current state of the mooring line or tug line, situation around the propeller or thruster area, and the motion of the main engine or thruster.

Ø  Officers and crew who work in mooring/unmooring operations on the deck need to pay keen attention to the ship’s movement

Ø  Good communication channels should be established with the crew of the tug boat or line man on shore side before operating the mooring lines or tug lines.

Ø  When heaving or releasing the mooring line, the surrounding situation should be carefully considered in order to avoid inflicting damage to any shore structure.

Ø  Consider the position between your own mooring line and that of any other vessel present in the vicinity. (Check the possibility of a direct sending line from the fair leader to the shore side bitt, and confirm that there is no likelihood of the mooring line coming into contact with that of another vessel.

Ø  When sending a mooring line to a bitt which is being used by another vessel, give instructions to the line man to lead the mooring line through the underside inside of the eye of the other mooring line, before fastening to the bitt.

Synthetic mooring lines can pose a great danger to personnel if not properly used. Handling of synthetic mooring lines has a higher potential accident risk than most other shipboard activities.

The most serious danger is “snap-back”, the sudden release of the static energy stored in the stretched synthetic mooring line when it breaks.