STCW Personal Survival 5 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: When a vessel sounds the general emergency alarm, how many short blasts followed by one long blast are used?
- Five short blasts
- Six short blasts followed by one long blast
- Seven short blasts followed by one long blast (Correct answer)
- Three long blasts
Correct answer: Seven short blasts followed by one long blast
The international general emergency alarm signal is seven or more short blasts followed by one long blast on the ship's whistle and alarm bells.
Question 2: What is the correct technique for entering the water to avoid injury when jumping from a height?
- Dive headfirst to minimize splash
- Cross arms over the lifejacket, hold nose, keep feet together and cross ankles (Correct answer)
- Spread arms and legs wide to slow descent
- Remove the lifejacket before jumping and hold it overhead
Correct answer: Cross arms over the lifejacket, hold nose, keep feet together and cross ankles
Crossing arms over the lifejacket to hold it down, pinching the nose, and keeping feet together prevents the lifejacket from riding up and injuring the face on water entry.
Question 3: Which of the following is NOT included in a standard liferaft emergency pack (SOLAS A pack)?
- Thermal protective aids
- Sea anchor
- Radar reflector
- Handheld GPS receiver (Correct answer)
Correct answer: Handheld GPS receiver
SOLAS A pack emergency equipment includes thermal protective aids, sea anchor, radar reflector, flares, water, food, and first aid items, but not a GPS receiver.
Question 4: What physiological stage follows cold shock during cold water immersion?
- Cardiac arrest
- Swimming failure due to muscle incapacitation (Correct answer)
- Immediate hypothermia
- Hyperventilation ceasing permanently
Correct answer: Swimming failure due to muscle incapacitation
After cold shock subsides (within 3–5 minutes), the next danger is swimming failure as cold water rapidly incapacitates the muscles of the arms and legs, making swimming impossible.
Question 5: A liferaft with a carrying capacity of 25 persons must have at minimum how many liters of drinking water per person in its emergency pack?
- 0.5 liters per person
- 1.5 liters per person (Correct answer)
- 3 liters per person
- 5 liters per person
Correct answer: 1.5 liters per person
SOLAS requires at least 1.5 liters of fresh drinking water per person in the liferaft emergency pack.
Question 6: What is the significance of the 'muster list' in relation to personal survival?
- It is a list of all distress signals available on board
- It assigns crew and passengers to specific survival craft and duties in an emergency (Correct answer)
- It records all persons who have completed survival training
- It documents inspection dates of all lifesaving appliances
Correct answer: It assigns crew and passengers to specific survival craft and duties in an emergency
The muster list specifies each person's assigned survival craft, muster station, and duties during an emergency, ensuring organized evacuation.
Question 7: When should the painter line of an inflatable liferaft be cut after abandoning ship?
- Immediately after the raft inflates, before boarding
- Only after all survivors are aboard and the ship is about to sink or has sunk (Correct answer)
- After 15 minutes regardless of the ship's condition
- When the raft drifts more than 10 meters from the ship
Correct answer: Only after all survivors are aboard and the ship is about to sink or has sunk
The painter line should be cut only after all available survivors are aboard and the vessel has sunk or poses a swamping risk, to avoid being dragged under with the ship.
STCW Personal Survival 5
When a vessel sounds the general emergency alarm, how many short blasts followed by one long blast are used?