C90 SAFETY OF LIFE AT SEA 



PART F— GENERAL FIRE PRECAUTIONS 



(Part F applies to passenger ships and cargo ships) 



Regulation 68 



Means of Escape 



(a) Passenger Ships 



(i) In and from all passenger and crew spaces and spaces in which cre\ 

 are normally employed, other than machinery spaces, stairways and ladderwayl 

 shall be arranged so as to provide ready means of escape to the lifeboat 

 embarkation deck. In particular the following precautions shall be complied 

 with : — 



(1) below the bulkhead deck, two means of escape, at least one of which 



shall be independent of watertight doors, shall be provided for each 

 watertight compartment or similarly restricted space or group of 

 spaces. One of these means of escape may be dispensed with by 

 the Administration, due regard being paid to the nature and the 

 location of spaces concerned, and to the number of persons who 

 normally might be quartered or employed there; 



(2) above the bulkhead deck, there shall be at least two practical means 



of escape from each main vertical zone or similarly restricted space 

 or group of spaces at least one of which shall give access to a 

 stairway forming a vertical escape; 



(3) at least one of the means of escape shall be by means of a readily 



accessible enclosed stairway, which shall provide as far as practicable 

 continuous fire shelter from the level of its origin to the lifeboat 

 embarkation deck. The width, number and continuity of the 

 stairways shall be to the satisfaction of the Administration. 



(ii) In machinery spaces, two means of escape, one of which may be a 

 watertight door, shall be provided from each engine room, shaft tunnel and 

 boiler room. In machinery spaces, where no watertight door is available, 

 the two means of escape shall be formed by two sets of steel ladders as widely 

 separated as possible leading to doors in the casing similarly separated and 

 from which access is provided to the embarkation deck. In the case of ships 

 of less than 2,000 tons gross tonnage, the Administration may dispense with 

 this requirement, due regard being paid to the width and the disposition of 

 the casing. 



Ch. 2 



