Fires are still one of the biggest safety issues for the maritime industry

The number of fires aboard large vessels has increased significantly in recent years and has been the third leading cause of ship losses over the past decade.

According to the Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty (AGCS) annual report, Safety & Shipping Review, the number of fires on large boats has climbed dramatically in recent years. Nearly 40 cargo-related fire accidents happened in 2019 alone, or once every ten days. At the end of 2020, ten different fires/explosions resulted in total losses across all types of vessels, accounting for one in every five total losses worldwide.

Captain Rahul Khanna, Global Director of Marine Risk Consulting at AGCS, says that “RoRo and auto transport vessels, in particular, may be more exposed to fire and stability issues than other vessels as they require additional emphasis on risk management. To facilitate the transportation of automobiles, the interior spaces are not divided into separate sections like other cargo ships. The lack of interior bulkheads can harm safety, whereas a small fire in a vehicle or battery could quickly go outside control. In addition, the large volume of air inside the open cargo deck further increases oxygen supply in the event of a fire”.

Other relevant points from the AGCS’ Safety $ Shipping Review:

• Fire/explosion was the third leading cause of total vessel losses in the last decade (2011 to 2020), with 99 total losses reported, representing around 11% of total losses overall. The two leading causes are: shipwreck (54%) and grounding (20%).
• Cargo ships are responsible for 40% of total losses in the last decade. (348 out of a total of 876). Passenger/cruise ships account for less than 10% (69 out of 876).
• Fires on board ships are the fifth leading cause of shipping incidents worldwide – There have been more than 1,700 incidents have been reported in the last decade (on all types of ships), representing around 7% of these incidents.
• Transport ship fires often start in containers, which can result from under-declaring or mis-declaring dangerous goods such as chemicals and batteries. When misdeclared, these can be improperly packed and stowed on board, resulting in ignition and/or complicated fire detection and fighting. The greater the number of containers on board, the greater the likelihood that at least one could ignite and cause a fire, and the more difficult it is to contain and extinguish it.

The ability to detect and combat vessel fires is proportional to the vessel’s size. Vessels grow in size every year, and large catastrophes have demonstrated that flames can go quickly out of control, resulting in the crew fleeing the ship for safety reasons, thus increasing potential losses. Although public awareness of this issue has grown, it remains a significant worry.

For more information, go to AGCS Safety & Shipping Review.

Source: Segs.com.br

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