A loaded chemical/oil products tanker was underway in heavy weather. The vessel was facing 6m head seas and water was frequently shipping over the bow and forecastle. Speed was reduced to about 6 knots and crew were not allowed on deck.
The water ingress alarm for the bosun’s store sounded in the engine control room, and the duty engineer immediately notified the Officer of the Watch (OOW) on the bridge. It was suspected that the forecastle deck hatch (1.4m X 1m) to the bosun’s store had been...