Collision Bulkhead

An athwartships bulkhead positioned at the forepart of the vessel. As the name suggests, it is meant to sustain the rest of the ship’s length following an impact such as when in a collision. The bulkhead is stiffened and considered watertight, although it is pierced by a single pipe usually to accommodate the fore peak pumping arrangement. It would be one of the structural members that would be visually sighted when carrying out a damage assessment following a collision, to detect cracks or similar damage which might lead to consecutive flooding of the vessel.