NTSB Marine Accident Brief
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has issued Marine Accident Brief regarding engine room fire on board fishing vessel Arctic Storm.
On the afternoon of May 20, 2013, a fire broke out in the engine room of the uninspected fishing vessel Arctic Storm as it was under way in the North Pacific Ocean, about 46 nautical miles west of Aberdeen, Washington, conducting fish processing operations. The crew extinguished the fire through the combined use of portable extinguishers, fixed suppression, and fire hoses. No injuries or pollution resulted from the accident. The estimated damage to the Arctic Storm was $5 million.
About 1505, the chief engineer had just entered the engine room when he noticed a fire in the overhead area above the main propulsion engine. He also noticed that the turbocharger on the engines starboard side was engulfed in flames. He radioed the captain on the bridge, and then he and the on-watch oiler exited the engine room, which was quickly filling with smoke. The oiler proceeded to the fish processing space, located directly above the engine room, and alerted the workers there.
The captain had already heard the main engines fire alarm activate moments earlier. He looked out the bridge window and saw a large amount of smoke pouring out of the engine rooms ventilation outlets. He also saw that some crewmembers on deck were beginning to respond to the emergency. The captain sounded the vessels general alarm and radioed vessels in the area for assistance. The Coast Guard heard this callout as well. Because the Arctic Storm was conducting fish processing operations that included smaller fishing vessels working nearby, several of those vessels responded.
The Arctic Storm crewmembers reported to their muster stations to begin coordinating the fire response. At the chief engineers request, the captain remotely shut down the engine rooms ventilation systems and closed its watertight doors to contain the fire. The chief engineer also instructed the engineering crew to ensure that the engine rooms power panel emergency stops, ventilation emergency stops, and remote quick-closing valves for the fuel oil storage tanks all were activated.
After the fire was extinguished, the chief engineer found a vent valve lying atop one of the engines attached pumps. He determined that the valve was associated with the fuel oil piping system located on the engines starboard-side fuel oil header near the starboard-side turbocharger. The valve had become detached from the fuel oil piping system as a result of a fracture at its threaded connection fitting. The quarter-inch, 2,000-psi valve had been installed at an elevated position at the forward end of the fuel oil piping system, and it was used to vent air from the system as needed. After the accident, the crew pressure-tested the fuel oil piping system and found no abnormal leaks or openings other than at the vent valve connection.
| Probable Cause |
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The National Transportation Safety Board determines that the probable cause of the fire on board fishing vessel Arctic Storm was a fractured fitting on a fuel oil vent valve, located on the main propulsion engine, which resulted in fuel oil spraying onto a hot engine surface and igniting. |
Further details may be found by reading the NTSB Marine Accident Brief
