Originally Posted by
GrayHorizonsHeli
Do the life boats have enough capacity these days for all the passengers? Or do the crew of the ship cull out the weak and unstable, so the strong can survive??
In this case, were they actively using/loading the lifeboats at the time the helicopters were plucking people from the deck?
As per SOLAS:
Passenger vessels on
long international voyages must carry partially or fully enclosed lifeboats for at least 50% of capacity on each side and rigid or inflatable life rafts for at least 25% of capacity, for a total of life-saving appliances for at least 125% of capacity.
Passenger vessels on
short international voyages must carry partially or fully enclosed lifeboatds for at least 30% of capacity and inflatable or rigid liferafts for at least 70% of capacity, plus inflatable or rigid lifeboats for at least 25% of capacity, for a total of life-saving appliances for at least 125% of capacity.
(
https://www.rina.org.uk/lifeboats.html)
"Long international voyage" means an international voyage which is not a short international voyage;
"Short international voyage" means an international voyage:
a.) in the course of which a ship is not more than 200 miles from a port or place in which the passengers and crew could be placed in safety, and
b.) which does not exceed 600 miles in distance between the last port of call in the country in which this voyage begins and the final port of destination,
but for the purposes of this definition, no account shall be taken of any deviation by a ship from the intended voyage due solely to the stress of weather or any other circumstances that neither the master nor the owner nor the charterer (if any) of the ship could have prevented or forestalled.
Solas Chapter V - Annex 1 - Categories of Waters and Classes of Ships