The individual division officers are responsiblefor maintaining the list in good physical condition.The commanding officer, assisted by theDCA, is responsible for filling in the columnmarked Division Responsibility.The divisions concerned are responsible forsecuring fittings that are classified as XRAY orYOKE. The ship’s repair parties are responsiblefor securing ZEBRA fittings.MATERIAL CONDITIONOF READINESSThe term material condition of readinessrefersto the degree of access and system closure ineffect at any given time. The securing of accessfittings or systems limits the extent of damage thatcould occur to a ship. To prevent interference withnormal operations, the ship does not maintainmaximum closure at all times.For damage control purposes, naval ships havethree material conditions of readiness. Eachcondition represents a different degree of tightnessand protection. The three material conditions ofreadiness are called XRAY, YOKE, and ZEBRA.These titles have no connection with the phoneticalphabet. Furthermore, the titles are used in allspoken and written communications that concernmaterial conditions.Condition XRAY provides the least amountof protection. It is set when the ship is in nodanger of attack. Examples are when the ship isat anchor in a well-protected harbor or whensecured at a home base during regular workinghours.Condition YOKE provides more protectionthan condition XRAY. It is set and maintainedat sea during peacetime and in port duringwartime. It is also maintained in port duringpeacetime outside of regular working hours.Condition ZEBRA is set before a ship leavesor enters port during wartime. It is also setimmediately, without further orders, when theship is manning general quarters stations. Also,condition ZEBRA is set to isolate and control firesand flooding when the ship is not at generalquarters.All watertight, airtight, firetight, and fume-tight access fittings belong to a certain classifica-tion of fittings. Although the fittings usually havea basic classification, a select group of closureswithin each of the three material conditions ofreadiness are modified. The purpose of themodified closures is to allow access to a space thatis secured because of the material condition thatis set. Once a material condition is set, no fittingwithin the condition is to be opened without priorauthorization. Closures that are not modifiedrequire permission of the commanding officer tobe opened. Permission to open a closure isobtained through the damage control central(DCC) watch or the officer of the deck (OOD)when the ship is not manning the general quartersstations. Repair party officers control the openingand closing of all fittings in their assigned areaswhen the ship is at general quarters. Any changein the status of a fitting must be reported to DCCso that the ship’s DC closure log maybe updated.You may open a modified closure without anyspecial authorization. However, you are notauthorized to leave the closure open unattended.Through careful attention to these procedures, aship’s watertight integrity can be maintained ata safe level.The following discussion will help you learnabout each classification, how the classificationis marked, what group of fittings have theclassification, and when you may or may not opena fitting with that classification.XRAY fittings are marked with a black X.These closures are secured during conditionsXRAY, YOKE, and ZEBRA. You must not openfittings with this classification without properauthorization. You will find this classification onthe following access closures:Doors and hatches to storerooms andstowage spaces, including cargo ammuni-tion spacesHatches that are provided with a scuttleand lead to magazines and handling roomsBolted-plate manhole coversEscape scuttles not covered elsewhereDoors and hatches located only on theweather deck and below that are used tostrike down stores and ammunitionAccess to an aircraft fueling stationcompartmentAccess to escape trunks in machineryspacesAccess to the arresting gear machineryroomAccess to the eductor room7-16
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