NTSB Releases Fire Safety Advisory
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) issued a safety alert calling on fire departments to better train land-based firefighters for marine fires. According to the statement, most firefighters aiding marine firefighters aren’t comprehensively trained on marine fire procedures, making for even more hazardous conditions.
“Many land-based firefighters lack the necessary training and familiarity with vessel layouts and fire protection systems to effectively fight in-port vessel fires,” the NTSB said in the alert. “Combatting vessel fires, especially aboard large commercial vessels, requires different resources, skills and tactics than fighting structural fires on land.”
There are several differences between fires aboard marine vessels and on land. While the goal of both land and shoreside firefighting is to extinguish a fire, the priority of shoreside firefighting is to contain the fire first. Firefighters must be extremely careful when using water to put out vessel flames as the vessel can flood and sink. Portable radios are also ineffective on most large vessels constructed of steel, which reflects radio waves.
The NTSB emphasized the importance of understanding vessel layouts and fire-related components. Structural fire protection is another feature of most commercial vessels that can be better used to a firefighter’s advantage. Elements such as fire-resistant bulkheads and decks help slow the spread of the flames and divide the vessel into areas that can be sealed and starved of oxygen. Most of these fire protection zones are also equipped with carbon dioxide systems that can help choke fires but can also be extremely hazardous if released improperly.
The NTSB cited three vessel fires in the last five years that resulted in firefighter deaths and injuries due to poor training. In 2020, nine firefighters were injured in an explosion on the Hoegh Xiamen vehicle carrier in Jacksonville, Fla., after a cargo deck exhaust vent was opened, possibly releasing flammable vapors.
In 2022, an engineroom fire aboard the passenger vessel Spirit of Norfolk spread beyond the fire protection zone and took four days to extinguish due to poor communication between firefighters and the unified command aboard.
The NTSB also cited the 2023 fire aboard the Grande Costa D’Avorio, a roll-on/roll-off container vessel on which a vehicle caught fire. Two land-based firefighters died when they were unable to evacuate a garage deck filled with smoke. According to the NTSB, leaders of the Newark Fire Division instructed firefighters to actively engage the fire in the fire protection zone where the extinguishing system had been activated, allowing increased amounts of oxygen to worsen the blaze.
In the alert, the NTSB encouraged fire departments to formulate training plans specific to ports and vessel fires so crews are better prepared, as well as coordinating with the Coast Guard and local ports so firefighters become familiar with emergency operating procedures, communication strategies and port and ship layouts.
