When a ship meets an emergency, there are many tools and equipment that work as a saviour. Lifeboat is one such live-saving equipment that helps passengers, and crews to escape a malfunctioning ship. It is mandatory for every ship to have a rescue boat for rescuing, apart from other lifeboats. To simplify, if more than two lifeboats are on the ship, then one lifeboat can be designated as the rescue boat. Now, if you are planning to buy a passenger ferry for sale, then you need to have proper information about different safety equipment that should be present on the ship. If that is so, then you should also have an in-depth understanding of lifeboats. Here, in this blog, we have described the different types of lifeboats that are used on passenger ferries and other vessels.
First, let us know,
What Are Lifeboats?
Lifeboats as the name suggests are one of the most important life-saving equipment that stays on an onboard ship. These boats are used in times of emergency, for instance, when it is required to abandon the main ship. Lifeboats are smaller vessels that are rigid in nature. They are kept suspended from davits so that these life-saving vessels in a negligible amount of time can be launched with very little mechanical assistance, and make an early escape possible for the ship’s crew and passengers.
Moreover, abiding by the codes under LSA and SOLAS, every lifeboat should mandatorily carry all the types of equipment that are required for survival at the sea. For instance, a lifeboat should carry, rations, first aid, freshwater, and distress signalling tools like a rocket, and a compass. A ship must have a rescue boat just for the purpose of rescuing. Now, if more than two boats are there on the ship, one can be used as the rescue boat.
Now, let’s come to the different types of lifeboats that are used on a ship.
Three Types of Lifeboats
There are mainly three types of lifeboats used on a ship.
Open Lifeboat
Open lifeboat comes with no roof over the head, and is propelled normally with the help of manual power, for instance, hand ores can be used to move them. Also, they can come equipped with compression ignition engines, which are also provided for the purpose of propulsion. However, open lifeboats are now becoming obsolete due to strict safety norms. One can however be found on old ships. During bad weather such as rain, these open lifeboats do not come to help, and in them, the water ingression possibility is at the highest.
Closed Lifeboat
Closed lifeboats are popular types of lifeboats used on vessels. These are enclosed lifeboats that can keep the crews safe from seawater, rough weather, and strong wind. Further, for these boats, the watertight integrity is comparatively higher in these lifeboats. These boats are so designed that if they get toppled due to the pressure of waves, they can get upright on their own.
Now, when it comes to closed lifeboats, they can be classified as partially, and fully closed lifeboats.
Are you planning to buy a passenger ferry for sale? Then, make sure to get in touch with a top ship broker who can show you great options.
Free fall Lifeboat
Freefall lifeboat is almost a similar type of enclosed lifeboat. However, the process of launching these lifeboats is different. Since these free-fall lifeboats are aerodynamic in nature, they can easily penetrate the water without any damage being caused to the boat’s body, when they are launched from the ship. These stay suspended from the ship’s-aft because this area offers a clear area for the free fall of the lifeboat.
Conclusion
Now, that you have come to the end of the blog, you know the different types of lifeboats that can be onboard ship. So, if you are someone who wants to purchase a passenger ferry for sale, can now have a proper idea about this safety equipment that should on the ship compulsorily, and you can now make better decisions regarding your ship. Now, if you are looking for the best passenger ships, then it would be best for you to get in touch with a top shipbroker.
