ELECTRICAL FAULT CAUSED THE FIRE ON BEST REVENGE 5 SAYS NTSB REPORT
The NTSB has issued its investigation report on the fire onboard sailing boat ‘Best Revenge 5’, while it was docked at a marina pier at Inner Harbor in Falmouth, Massachusetts, in July 2017.
At about 0130 on 11 July 2017, the ‘Best Revenge 5’ caught fire while docked at a marina pier in Falmouth Inner Harbor. The vessel’s two crew members escaped the burning vessel and attempted to fight the fire but could not contain it. Local firefighters later extinguished it.
One crew member sustained second and third degree burns to the arms, hands, and feet. An oil sheen was observed in the immediate vicinity of the vessel after the fire but was contained by a floating boom.
Damage to the Best Revenge 5 (which was declared a constructive total loss), to a vessel docked next to it, and to the pier totalled an estimated $1,508,000.
Probable cause The National Transportation Safety Board determines that the probable cause of the fire aboard the uninspected sailing vessel Best Revenge 5 and on its pier was an electrical fault in an accommodation space on the vessel.
Analysis After the fire, marina personnel reported that the circuit breaker powering the dock pedestal from shore was in the “tripped” position (electrically disconnected as a protection measure) and that the two shore power circuit breakers onboard the vessel (fed by cables from the pedestal) were undamaged and tripped to the “off” position as well. They concluded that the vessel “may have been [electrically] powered at the time of the fire.”
The fire originated on the port side of the vessel; specifically, in the area between the port side lavatory, aft stateroom closet, and port side hull, in the area of the shore power pedestal. The only potential ignition sources identified within the area of origin were the shore power pedestal, electrical conductors/ components in the lavatory, aft-port stateroom closet, and area above the aft port lavatory/shower area. The only fuels identified were the fiberglass hull, insulation, and ordinary combustibles within the area of origin. The report noted that both equipment and conductors that may have been affected by the lightning strike (which occurred a month earlier in Bermuda) were “located in the general origin area of the fire.
Full story and report available here:
https://bit.ly/2L1qwcD
CLASSNK PUBLISHES ITS ANNUAL REPORT ON PORT STATE CONTROL WITH ILLUSTRATED DEFICIENCIES FOUND
Leading classification society, ClassNK, has released its 2018 annual report on Port State Control (PSC). The report aims to assist ship operators and management companies in maintaining compliant operations by providing information about ships detained by PSC as well as deficiencies that were found on board from many port states in 2017. However, surveyors will find the examples and images of the deficiencies illustrated in the report of key interest too.
In line with the International Safety Management (ISM) Code, PSC inspections ensure that vessels departing the port meet international standards and have proved to be highly effective in eliminating substandard ships that are in operation. They oversee not only the hardware of a ship, but also the software by examining the maintenance and operation methods being used.
To help its customers improve safety management systems and overall fleet quality, ClassNK has included a breakdown of deficiencies which shows that fire safety-related deficiencies continue to be the most frequent detainable deficiencies item. ISM, lifesaving appliances and safety of navigation also remain major items where many detainable deficiencies are found.
Click to download the 58 page report:
https://bit.ly/2uEbxKP
14 | The Report • September 2018 • Issue 85
Safety Briefings
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