Prepare the vessel and work the deck on a lobster trip

What is going on

Cape Ellen sails on Friday at 5:30 am for a two day southern rock lobster trip (TRP-26-146) with the skipper and one other deckhand. It is your first trip on this vessel. The pre-departure checklist has not been completed, the weather forecast shows a freshening south westerly on Saturday, and the skipper wants the checklist and your vessel induction done on Thursday afternoon. On the trip you will haul pots on the winch, sort and measure lobster, return undersize and berried females alive, keep the live tank at temperature and record the catch. Sea Wren's winch brake failed last week, so winch checks are on everyone's mind. Seabirds have been entangled in pot lines twice this season.

Your brief

Complete the pre-departure checklist and your induction so the vessel can sail safely, work the deck to the safety rules, handle and record catch correctly under fisheries rules and the food safety program, and report any protected species interaction on the correct form.

Work through it

You do not need to do it all. Doing a few of these will show you what the work is like. Your ticks and notes stay on this device.

• Read the Vessel Pre-departure and Deck Safety Procedure and the Environmental Management and Protected Species Policy, and list the checklist items and the deck rules that apply to pot fishing.
• Work through the pre-departure checklist with the skipper, including safety equipment, winch and lifting gear, radio and beacon, ice and live tank, and record it in the Catch and Vessel Log for TRP-26-146.
• Complete your vessel induction: locate every item of safety equipment, learn the emergency stations for fire, flooding, person overboard and abandon ship, and confirm the watch roster.
• Record any defect found during the checklist on the Incident and Hazard Report Form and confirm with the skipper whether it is critical before the vessel sails.
• During hauling, work to the deck rules: personal flotation device on, clear of the winch drum and bights, and stop the haul if the brake or gear behaves abnormally.
• Sort each pot: measure lobster against the legal size, return undersize and berried females alive, place retained lobster in the live tank and record the count and estimated weight per haul.
• If a seabird or seal interacts with the gear, release it alive where safe, complete the Protected Species Interaction Report Form and tell the skipper for the catch report.
• At landing, record the catch by species and weight in the Catch and Vessel Log, confirm the live tank temperature record, and help the skipper set the status to Landed with any notes.

What someone in this role would produce

• The completed pre-departure checklist entry in the Catch and Vessel Log
• A vessel induction record listing safety equipment locations and emergency stations
• Catch records per haul and the landed catch entry
• A completed Protected Species Interaction Report Form (real or from the scenario event)