Rest hours & drills: what SIRE 2.0 inspectors ask and find
Rest-hour records are cross-checked against drill times, the bell book and the log, so a drill outside the recorded hours stands out at once.
Do this before the inspector arrives: Cross-check rest hours with drill times and the bell book.
What the inspector wants to see
- Rest hours that match drill times and the bell book
- Familiarisation checklists
- Drill records
Questions inspectors ask about Rest hours & drills
Which activities must be shown as work time in rest-hour records?
Drills, manoeuvring, safety and management meetings, cargo start/stop/topping-off, tank cleaning, ODME operation and alarm call-outs.
The AMS shows an oiler attended an alarm at 0300, but his work hours do not. Why is this a finding?
Every call-out recorded in the AMS must also appear in that person's work hours; inspectors cross-check the two.
Which records do inspectors compare against rest hours?
AMS alarm logs, permit closure times, bunkering times, cargo/tank-cleaning/ODME times, manoeuvring times, meeting records and the shipboard working arrangements.
For rest-hour purposes, when does the C/E's work start during bunkering?
30 minutes before the barge comes alongside.
During the SSSCL repeat check, whose work hours must also be recorded?
The person relieving the CCR duty officer, for the period of relief.
Which rest hours are often forgotten for senior deck officers and catering staff?
Senior deck officers doing 2nd-level monitoring of cargo operations, and the chief cook/messman receiving provisions in their off-duty time.
There are 16 Rest hours & drills questions in NilObs, with spaced repetition so the ones you miss come back. Practise them free.
Real Rest hours & drills observations, and how to avoid them
Rest hour records for one month showed several breaches of the 24-hour minimum for the Master, C/O, 2/O and 3/O.
Avoid it: Review rest hours daily and plan work so nobody drops below the minimum; record and address breaches.
Interviewee gave the wrong oil spill drill duty (first aid kit and stretcher) when the muster list assigned lifeboat preparation and gas detector.
Avoid it: Check your muster list duty for each emergency and know it before an inspector asks.
Company policy allowed all principal fire drill scenarios to be covered over twelve months instead of six.
Avoid it: Plan fire drills so every principal scenario is covered within the expected six-month cycle.
No cargo pump room fire drill had been held in the last twelve months, as company policy required.
Avoid it: Track drill scenarios on a planner so none, such as a pump room fire, gets missed.
Drill procedures and records did not capture safety precautions for the drill, lessons for the contingency plan, or attached risk assessments and permits.
Avoid it: Record drill safety precautions and lessons learnt, and attach any RA or permits used.
On one STS day the Master and C/O had less than 10 hours' rest in 24 hours; records showed compensatory rest was taken.
Avoid it: Plan STS work around rest hours and record any exception and compensatory rest properly.
Drill reports did not show who took part, and the procedures did not require participants' names or ranks to be recorded.
Avoid it: Record the names and ranks of drill participants so anyone who missed it can catch up.
Rest hour records showed rest split into three periods, some under one hour, although the ship's procedure claimed STCW compliance.
Avoid it: Rest may be split into no more than two periods, one at least 6 hours long; check entries daily.
Who answers for Rest hours & drills
Master, Chief Officer, Third Officer, Chief Engineer, Ordinary Seaman, Oiler / Motorman, Cook, Steward / Messman, HSEQ Manager, Designated Person Ashore, Crewing Manager, Training Officer, Other role. NilObs picks the questions and the daily drill for your role.
Rehearse Rest hours & drills before your next inspection.
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