Merchant Shipping (Fire Appliances) (Post-1980 Ships) Rules, 1983.
Statutory Instruments
Source: Statutory Instruments

num: 1
paragraphs: (1) These Rules may be cited as the Merchant Shipping (Fire Appliances) (Post-1980 Ships) Rules, 1983 and shall come into operation on the 1st day of December, 1983.
(2) In these Rules—
"accommodation space" means passenger spaces, public spaces, corridors, lavatories, cabins, offices, crew spaces, shops, hospitals, cinemas, games and hobbies rooms, isolated pantries containing no cooking appliances and similar spaces;
"bulkhead deck" means the uppermost deck up to which the transverse water-tight bulkheads are carried;
"cargo spaces" means all spaces used for cargo including cargo oil tanks and trunks to such spaces and slop tanks;
"combination carrier" means a tanker designed to carry oil or solid cargoes in bulk;
"control station" includes those spaces in which the ship's radio or main navigating equipment or the emergency source of power are located or where the fire detection or fire control equipment is centralised;
"crew space" means crew accommodation within the meaning of section 20(7) of the Merchant Shipping (Crew Accommodation on Board Ship) Regulations, 1951 ( S.I. No. 95 of 1951 );
"crude oil" means any oil occurring naturally in the earth whether or not it is treated to render it suitable for transportation and includes:
( a ) crude oil from which certain distillate fractions may have been removed; and
( b ) crude oil to which certain distillate fractions may have been added;
"dangerous goods" means dangerous goods within the meaning of the Merchant Shipping (Dangerous Goods) Rules, 1983 ( S.I. No. 306 of 1983 );
"deadweight" means the difference in tonnes between the displacement of a ship at summer load water line and the lightweight of the ship;
"fishing vessel" means a fishing boat within the meaning of section 170 of the Merchant Shipping Act, 1894;
"gas safe space" means a space into which the entry of hydrocarbon gases or other gases of a flammable nature has been restricted;
"Code for the Construction and Equipment of Ships Carrying Dangerous Chemicals in Bulk" means the code of that name published by the International Maritime Organisation;
"length" in relation to a registered ship means registered length, and in relation to an unregistered ship means the length from the fore part of the stem to the aft side of the head of the stern post or, if no stern post is fitted to take the rudder, to the fore side of the rudder stock at the point where the rudder passes out of the hull;
"lightweight" means the displacement of a ship in tonnes without cargo, oil fuel, lubricating oil, ballast water, fresh water in tanks, stores, together with passengers and crew and their effects;
"machinery spaces of Category A" means all spaces which contain:
( a ) internal combustion type machinery used either for main propulsion purposes or for other purposes where such machinery has in the aggregate a total power output of not less than 373 kW, or
( b ) any oil-fired boiler or oil-fired unit and trunks to such spaces;
"machinery spaces" means all machinery spaces of Category A and all other spaces containing propelling machinery, boilers, oil fuel units, steam and internal combustion engines, generators and major electrical machinery, oil filling stations, refrigerating, stabilising, ventilation and air conditioning machinery and similar spaces and trunks to such spaces;
"Marine Notice" means a Notice described as such and issued by the Department of Transport;
"new ship" means a ship the keel of which is laid or which is at a similar stage of construction on or after the 25th day of May, 1980;
"oil-fired boiler" means any boiler wholly or partly fired by liquid fuel not being a domestic boiler of less than 73.2kW.;
"oil fuel unit" means the equipment used for the preparation of oil fuel for delivery to an oil fired boiler or equipment used for the preparation for delivery of heated oil to an internal combustion engine, and includes any pressure pumps, filters and heaters dealing with oil at a pressure more than 1.8 kilogrammes per square centimetre;
"passenger space" means space provided for the use of passengers;
"passenger ship" means a ship carrying more than 12 passengers;
"pleasure craft" means a vessel primarily used for sport or recreation;
"Protocol of 1978" means the Protocol of 1978 relating to the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea 1974;
"public spaces" are spaces used for halls, dining rooms, lounges and similarly permanently enclosed spaces;
"Reid vapour pressure" means the vapour pressure of a liquid as determined by laboratory testing in a standard manner in the Reid apparatus;
"ro/ro cargo space" means a space in a ship:
( a ) which is not divided or subdivided in any way; and
( b ) which extends either the entire length of the ship or a substantial part thereof; and
( c ) into which vehicles, or goods loaded by means of a vehicle, are loaded;
provided that such spaces are not used for bulk stowage of cargo;
"open ro/ro cargo spaces" means ro/ro cargo spaces which are open at both ends, or open at one end and provided with adequate natural ventilation effective over the entire length through permanent openings in the side plating or deck head;
"closed ro/ro cargo space" is a ro/ro cargo space which is not an open ro/ro space and not a weather deck;
"sailing ship" includes a ship provided with sufficient sail area for navigation under sails alone, whether or not fitted with mechanical means of propulsion;
"service spaces" include galleys, main pantries, laundries, store rooms, paint rooms, baggage rooms, mail and specie rooms, workshops (other than those forming part of machinery spaces) and similar spaces and trunks to such workshops;
"special category space" means an enclosed space above or below the bulkhead deck, which is intended for the carriage of motor vehicles with fuel in their tanks for their own propulsion, and into and from which such vehicles can be driven and to which passengers have access;
"tanker" means a cargo ship constructed or adapted for the carriage in bulk of liquid cargoes of a flammable nature;
"tons" means gross tons and the gross tonnage of a ship having alternative tonnages shall be taken to be the larger of those tonnages;
"water seal" means an arrangement or device, using water, to prevent the back flow of gases or vapours from cargo tanks into gas safe spaces;
"weather deck" means a deck completely exposed to the weather from above and at least two sides.
(3) Subject to paragraph (4) of this Rule, these Rules apply in relation to the following new ships:
( a ) ships registered in the State; and
( b ) other ships while they are within the State or the territorial waters thereof:
Provided that these Rules shall not apply to:
(i) a ship by reason of her being within a port in the State or within the territorial waters thereof if she would not have been in any such port or waters but for stress of weather or any other circumstance that neither the master nor the owner nor the charterer (if any) could have prevented;
(ii) pleasure craft which are not passenger ships and are of less than 45 feet in length;
(iii) mechanically-propelled sea-going fishing vessels registered in the State under the Mercantile Marine Act, 1955 (No. 29 of 1955) or entered in the fishing boat register under Part IV of the Merchant Shipping Act, 1894.
(4) Rules 46 and 47 of these Rules shall apply only to new tankers registered in the State of Classes VII(T), VIII (T), VIII(A)(T) and IX(A)(T).
2 Classification of ships
num: 2
paragraphs: (1) For the purpose of these Rules the ships to which these Rules apply shall be arranged, and are referred to in these Rules, in the following Classes:
Passenger ships
Class I. Passenger ships engaged on voyages (not being short international voyages) any of which are long international voyages.
Class II. Passenger ships engaged on voyages (not being long international voyages) any of which are short international voyages.
Class II(A). Passenger ships in respect of which there is or should be in force a certificate entitled "Passenger Certificate Class II(A)" being a certificate for ships engaged on voyages of any kind other than international voyages.
Class III. Passenger ships in respect of which there is or should be in force a certificate entitled "Passenger Certificate Class III" being a certificate for ships engaged only on voyages in the course of which they are at no time more than 70 miles by sea from their point of departure and not more than 18 miles from the coast of the State, and which are at sea only in fine weather and during restricted periods.
Class IV. Passenger ships in respect of which there is or should be in force a certificate entitled "Passenger Certificate Class IV" being a certificate for ships engaged only on voyages in partially smooth waters, or in smooth and partially smooth waters.
Class V. Passenger ships in respect of which there is or should be in force a certificate entitled "Passenger Certificate Class V" being a certificate for ships engaged only on voyages in smooth waters.
Class VI. Passenger ships in respect of which there is or should be in force a certificate entitled "Passenger Certificate Class IV" being a certificate for ships engaged only on voyages with not more than 250 passengers on board, to sea, in smooth or in partially smooth waters, in all cases in fine weather and during restricted periods in the course of which the ships are at no time more than 15 miles, exclusive of any smooth waters, from their point of departure nor more than 3 miles from land.
Ships other than passenger ships
Class VII. Ships (other than ships of Classes I, VII(T), VII(A), X, XI and XII) engaged on voyages any of which are long international voyages.
Class VII(A). Ships engaged in the whaling industry or employed as fish processing or canning factory ships, and ships engaged in the carriage of persons employed in the whaling, fish processing or canning industries.
Class VII(T). Tankers engaged on voyages any of which are long international voyages.
Class VIII. Ships (other than ships of Classes II, VIII(T), IX, X, XI and XII) and other ships engaged on voyages (not being long international voyages) any of which are short international voyages.
Class VIII(A). Ships (other than ships of Classes II(A) to VI inclusive VIII(A)(T), IX, IX(A), X, XI, and XII) and other ships engaged only on voyages which are not international voyages.
Class VIII(T). Tankers engaged on voyages (not being long international voyages) any of which are short international voyages.
Class VIII(A)(T). Tankers engaged only on voyages which are not international voyages.
Class IX. Tugs and tenders (other than ships of Classes II, II(A), III and VI) which proceed to sea but are not engaged on long international voyages.
Class IX(A). Ships (other than ships of Classes IV to VI inclusive) which do not proceed to sea.
Class IX(A)(T). Tankers which do not proceed to sea.
Class X. Fishing vessels other than ships of Classes I to VI inclusive.
Class XI. Sailing ships (other than fishing boats and ships of Class XII) which proceed to sea.
Class XII. Pleasure craft (other than ships of Classes I to VI inclusive) of 45 feet in length or over.
(2) In this Rule—
"long international voyage" means an international voyage which is not a short international voyage within the meaning of the Merchant Shipping (Safety Convention) Act, 1952 ;