Fire safety is crucial and must and must
be treated as such
Survitec has highlighted the dangers of inadequate maintenance, testing, and inspection of ship fire safety systems in a new white paper, which points to an alarming increase in fire-safety-related deficiencies found during Port State Control Inspections and subsequent ship detentions.
In a white paper released at the Posidonia tradeshow, Survitec highlighted that fire continues to be a leading cause of major shipping incidents, accounting for over 20% of total losses, and the most expensive cause of marine insurance claims. While the highest level of fire safety deficiencies in a decade was recorded by the Paris MoU in 2022, and the Tokyo MoU also reported an increase in detentions, with a staggering 15,562 deficiencies reported in 2023.
"Analysts report a 17% year-on-year rise in shipboard fires, which correlates with an increasing number of reports and testimonies from our network of certified service technicians and engineers that document serious faults requiring immediate corrective measures," said Metkel Yohannes, Director of Service & Rental Solutions, Survitec.
Survitec has found that the economic downturn and the emphasis on cost reduction post-COVID have negatively impacted fire safety, with some shipowners and operators maintaining and inspecting safety equipment themselves in an attempt to save costs. The past few years have also seen a worrying trend of fire safety-related deficiencies on board ships, with rising numbers of ship detentions following Port State Control Inspections. As a result, fire safety was made the focus of a Concentrated Inspection Campaign (CIC) that ran between September and November 2023. The results are alarming.
According to preliminary results published in January 2024, the Baltic Sea MOU carried out 1,237 inspections on vessels in its jurisdiction. Inspectors noted basic failings in routine fire safety practices, such as the maintenance of fire doors (36%) and the periodic testing of fire detection and alarm systems (22%).
Other MOUs cite similar findings. In a review of fire- related deficiencies found between July 2022 and July 2023, Paris MOU reported that most detainable deficiencies related to:
- Fire doors - Fixed fire extinguishing installations - Fire-dampers - Ventilation - Fire detection and alarm systems - Fire pumps and pipework - Remote means of control (valves, pumps, ventilation, etc).
The campaign was conducted jointly with the Tokyo MOU. Preliminary results published by the Tokyo MOU in March 2024 revealed a total of 8,273 inspections were carried out during the period, of which 7,190 (86.91%) were directly related to the CIC. 2,860 deficiencies were found on 1,287 ships, representing 17.90% of its CIC inspections.
92 | ISSUE 109 | SEP 2024 | THE REPORT
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