Looking at the Met Office maritime forecasts for the next few days suggests we are in for a bit of a battering and the two clips below suggest to me that anyone going out in a ship is either extremely brave or foolhardy beyond reason :

Violent storm 11 and Sea State “phenomenal” do not sound like the best place to be.

The Met Office guide to maritime forecasts has this (emphasis mine) :

Sea state

Smooth

Wave height less than 0.5 m

Slight

Wave height of 0.5 to 1.25 m

Moderate

Wave height of 1.25 to 2.5 m

Rough

Wave height of 2.5 to 4.0 m

Very rough

Wave height of 4.0 to 6.0 m

High

Wave height of 6.0 to 9.0 m

Very high

Wave height of 9.0 to 14.0 m

Phenomenal

Wave height more than 14.0 m

14 m waves sound like trying to sail up the side of a block of flats!

It would be safer trying to take a tray of chips off a Barnsley chick on a Saturday night!