FAILURE OF A HYDRAULIC HOSE FITTING LED TO VESSEL’S SINKING SAYS NTSB REPORT
The US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) issued an investigation report on a fire and explosion incident onboard the fishing vessel ‘Hit List’ while in Merrimack River off Massachusetts in August 2018. The investigation found that the fire was caused by failure of a hydraulic hose fitting. Meanwhile, the water used for firefighting efforts contributed to the vessel’s sinking.
About 1725, on 24 August, a fire was detected in the engine compartment aboard the commercial fishing vessel Hit List, shortly after the vessel arrived at the Newburyport harbormaster’s dock to offload its catch. The two owners on board attempted to fight the fire, but after smoke filled the cabin all four people aboard evacuated to the pier. The local fire department fought the fire using foam and water. The fire was extinguished about an hour later when the vessel partially sank alongside the pier.
Approximately 100 gallons of diesel fuel leaked into the Merrimack River. No injuries were reported, but damage to the vessel was estimated at $550,000.
Probable cause The NTSB determines that the probable cause of the fire aboard fishing vessel Hit List was the failure of a hydraulic hose fitting that sprayed pressurized hydraulic oil onto the engine, eventually causing the oil to ignite. Contributing to the sinking was water applied during firefighting efforts and flooding through the rubber engine exhaust tubing, which the fire burned through.
Analysis After the fire, the fitting was found to be broken off from the hydraulic block, and it most likely sprayed hydraulic fluid when pressurized onto the surface of the main engine turbocharger and ignited when the exterior surface heated up while the vessel was underway.
The fire eventually spread to other areas of the engine compartment and filled the cabin with smoke. Read the full report at
https://bit.ly/2NWRqo6.
REPORT FINDS FIRE ONBOARD CARGO VESSEL WAS DUE TO LACK OF COMPLIANCE WITH SMS
The NTSB has published its report on the fire that took place on board the cargo ship Chipolbrok Moon on 23 May 2018. The fire occurred while the ship was moored at the Industrial Terminal West in Greens Bayou in the Port of Houston, Texas.
On May 21, the Chipolbrok Moon arrived at Industrial Terminal West in Houston. After the ocean voyage and before offloading the cargo, the steel sea fastener tabs used to secure the turbine components had to be removed by cutting, using an oxygen/acetylene torch.
The next afternoon, a marine chemist tested the atmosphere in cargo holds no. 2 port, no. 3 port and starboard, and no. 4 starboard for oxygen content and presence of flammable vapors to determine if it was safe to carry out hotwork.
After testing the cargo holds, the marine chemist issued a certificate concluding that the cargo holds were ‘safe for workers and safe for hotwork’ and noted that the scope of work was to ‘high cut’ sea fasteners, avoiding cutting directly on the decks.
Probable Cause The National Transportation Safety Board determined that the probable cause of the fire aboard cargo vessel Chipolbrok Moon was the crew’s lack of compliance to the company’s safety management system and the marine chemist’s instructions pertaining to hotwork precautions. The latter allowed sparks and slag to fall through unprotected gaps between the removable decking pontoons and ignite the dust- protective covering of the transmission hubs.
Read the full story at
https://bit.ly/2Xmos57; or download the report in full at
https://bit.ly/2LxNLKu.
The Report • September 2019 • Issue 89 | 23
Safety Briefings
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