Vessel TRIAGE is a method for assessing and communicating the safety status of vessels in maritime distress and accidents. The method is intended for use by both vessels and maritime search and rescue actors. The method is used to form a rough understanding of the nature of the incident or accident and thereby determine the safety status of the vessel. The focus of the method is on the level of safety aboard a distress vessel for persons aboard.
The method expresses the safety status of the vessel in terms of a Vessel TRIAGE category. There are four categories: GREEN, YELLOW, RED and BLACK. The safety status of a vessel is least compromised when its Vessel TRIAGE category is green. Black represents the most unsafe conditions.
The method comprises three stages. In the first stage, the vessel status is examined in terms of the threat factors defined in the method (e.g. flooding, decrease of manoeuvrability). The next steps are to assess the severity of the realised threat factors using the threat factor matrix included in the method, and thereby determine the Vessel TRIAGE category describing the safety status of the vessel.
These stages are repeated as necessary during the accident, depending on the duration of the incident. Changes in the threat factors and their severity and in the Vessel TRIAGE category indicate how the situation is evolving and thus provide important information for the responsible maritime SAR authority and other actors participating in the situation, such as the Finnish Transport Agency, which serves as the port of refuge authority.
The key benefit of the method is that it establishes a shared framework for the vessel and SAR, thanks to which the nature of the accident or incident and the safety status of the distress vessel can be assessed and communicated more effectively. In certain cases, this can have a significant bearing on the final outcome of the accident, as the necessary SAR measures can be started faster than was previously possible.
In practice, the assessment of the safety status of the distress vessel and enhanced communications may mean that, for instance, if there is a fire on board the vessel, the master of the vessel or its crew can use the method to assess whether the vessel can provide safety to people. The vessel can be deemed to be safe to its passengers and crew when, for example, the fire has been extinguished immediately (status is GREEN) or if the fire only affects a limited area and can be kept under control (status is YELLOW). On the other hand, if the fire spreads aggressively and cannot be kept under control, the vessel will inform the Rescue Coordination Centre about the fire when sending out a distress alert, as in earlier situations, and states that the vessel status is RED. The red category immediately indicates to the SAR authority that the persons on board the vessel must be evacuated. When the status is red, there is a risk that the situation will deteriorate to black. In the case of a fire, the vessel status is BLACK if the conditions on board are no longer survivable, such as due to fire gases and heat, or if the vessel is being destroyed.
This video provides a simplified example of how the method is applied. The Vessel TRIAGE manual is also provided free for your use.
For more information about the Vessel TRIAGE method, see: vesseltriage(at)raja.fi