Launch of concentrated inspection campaign on Fire Safety Systems beginning 1 September 2012 by Paris Mou and Tokyo MoU on Port State Control.

The 43 Maritime Authorities of the Paris and the Tokyo Memoranda of Understanding (MoU) on Port State Control will launch a joint Concentrated Inspection Campaign (CIC) with the purpose to ensure compliance with SOLAS Chapter II-2/ Construction – fire protection, fire detection and fire extinction arrangements on board ships. This inspection campaign will be held for three months, commencing from 1 September 2012 and ending on 30 November 2012.

In practice, the CIC will mean that during a regular port State control inspection conducted under the regional ship selection criteria within the Paris and Tokyo MoU regions, the fire safety arrangements, maintenance records and other applicable documentation will be verified in more detail for compliance with SOLAS Chapter II-2.

Port State Control Officers (PSCOs) will use a list of 12 selected items to verify critical areas for the shipboard fire safety systems, some of which are related to documentation, equipment and crew familiarisation.

For this purpose, PSCOs will apply a CIC FSS – Questionnaire to be covered during the concentrated inspection.

When deficiencies are found, actions by the port State may vary from recording a deficiency and instructing the master to rectify it within a certain period to detaining the ship until serious deficiencies have been rectified.

In the case of detention, publication in the monthly detention lists of the Paris and Tokyo MoU web sites will take place.

It is expected that the Paris and Tokyo MoUs will carry out approximately 10,000 inspections during the CIC.

The results of the campaign will be analysed and findings will be presented to the governing bodies of the MoUs for submission to the IMO.

Other MOUs may also carry out a CIC on the same topic during this period.