SAFETY AT SEA.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVI, Issue 20385, 14 October 1929, Page 8

SAFETY AT SEA.

RAISING OF STANDARDS.

INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE

EQUIPMENT WITH RADIO.

[FROM: OUll OWN CORRESPONDENT.]

NEW YORK, Sept. 10,

A summary of the report of the Inter, national Conference on Safety at Sea, coy. ering nearly every phase of (he problem of safety of life on the sea, was made public by the Department of State last week.

The conference was convened on April 16 last, the nations represented being the United States, Great Britain, Germany, France, Italy, Japan, the Scandinavian countries, Finland, the Soviet Govern, ment of Russia, Spain, Australia, Canada the Irish Free State, the Netherlands and Belgium. Vice-Admiral Sir Herbert Rich, mond, H.N., was the president of the con. ference.

The convention, which was signed by every delegate, will come into force on July 1, 1931, as between the Governments which have deposited their ratifications by that date, provided not fewer than five nations hsive so acted. The principal subjects confiidercd by the conference were ship construction, life-saving appliances radio-telegraphy and safety of navigation. In the matter of ship construction the four main subjects are subdivision of ships, structure and openings and stability- To a very large extent the agree. ment9 with respect to these subjects were proposed by the American delegates.

A Test o! Stability. v In respect to existing ships, the obli. gation is imposed on each Government to effect upon its 6hips so far as practicable and reasonable, the increased standards of safety recommended, while in the of new ships a stability test is required. In regard to life-saving appliances, fire detection and extinction, the report provides specifically that there must be-ac-commodation in boats for all persons on board, and in addition buoyant apparatus for 25 per cent, of all persons on board. Regulations dealing with the construction of lifeboats, embarkation of pasgengers, the handling of dangerous car-' goes and with drills, it is stated, raise the world standards as well as the standards of the American law.

Since the international agreement of 1914 radio installation was required only on ships carrying 50 or more persons, while under the law of the United States radio installation is mandatory only on steam vessels having on board 50 or more persons and does not apply to sailing vessels. The new regulations require that all passenger and cargo ships of 1600 tons or over, when employed in international service, must be equipped with radio apparatus

An Interesting Problem. "An interesting problem of the conference," thei State Department summary says, "was with respect to authorising the use of automatic radio alarm receivers. The Washington radio telegraph convention of 1927 specified standards which should be {ittained by any such automatic alarm receiver.

"The present convention recognises the use of any automatic alarm receiver meeting the specifications of the Washington radio-telegraph convention. The general result of the provisionH of the convention relating to radio-telegraphy is that at least 1000 vessels not now equipped with radio will be required' to install radio apparatus. They make potential life-savers of a vastly increased number of ships. "The sections of the couvention dealing with navigation apply to all ships on all voyages. The regulations provide for dissemination of meteorological data by ships at sea; larger activities by the ice patrol, matter of alarm, distress and urgency signals, the efficient manning of ships and amendments to the regulations for the prevention of collisions at sea. Equipment of all passenger ships of 5000 tons or over with the radio compass is made mandatory."