Question

What should you do if you see a distress signal but cannot offer assistance without putting your vessel at risk?

Answer 1

You should notify the nearest authorities who can assist. It is mandatory to help  fellow boaters at sea when they are in distress, but this duty is waived if helping them will jeopardy your own safety. In this kind of situation, the best thing to do is to help them to get the needed help from appropriate sources.

Answer 2

Upon recognizing a distress signal in the horizon a ship must address the situation by evaluating if it can do something to aid the vessel which is undergoing an emergency. If this is not the case, it must do everything it can to notify vessels which are in the surroundings in order for them to provide aid. This is a common situation that small ships confront when sailing.