Combustible materials left unprotected near hot work led to a fire on a passenger vessel in New Orleans, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said. The fire resulted in $1.5 million in damages to the vessel.
The passenger vessel Natchez was moored and out of service when a fire broke out on May 3, 2022. The Natchez operated daytime and dinner jazz cruises daily on the Mississippi River, departing and returning from the French Quarter in New Orleans. No pollution or injuries were reported.
The Natchez had been undergoing renovations since January 2021 for an extensive overhaul, with a goal to return to service in 2023. On the day of the fire, contractors were removing the vessel’s main electrical panel to install a replacement. After work was completed for the day, the Natchez deckhand serving as the security watchstander saw smoke and flames in the engine room. The New Orleans Fire Department extinguished the fire. Most fire damage was contained within the generator space that housed the panel, with minor heat damage to the engine room and minor smoke damage to the external passenger decks located directly above the fire.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives determined the fire originated near the deck along the forward bulkhead, adjacent to where the hot work was performed. NTSB investigators saw photos taken prior to the fire that showed cardboard boxes, wooden shelves and other combustible were in the storage areas near where the hot work was performed.
NTSB investigators found neither the vessel owner nor the hot work contractor had a written safety policy or procedures in place for employees to review and follow when preparing for and conducting hot work on the vessel. Fire safety plans are required by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration regulations.
Hot Work and Fire Safety Regulations
Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) standards are contained in 29 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 1910. According to 29 CFR 1910.252, which contains general requirements for welding, cutting, and brazing, “Where practicable, all combustibles shall be relocated at least 35 feet (10.7 m) from the work site. Where relocation is impracticable, combustibles shall be protected with flameproofed covers or otherwise shielded with metal or asbestos guards or curtains.”
OSHA standards specifically for shipyard employment are contained in 29 CFR Part 1915. The regulation for fire safety plans, 29 CFR 1915.502, requires that a written fire safety plan be developed and implemented that covers all the actions that employers and employees must take to ensure employee safety in the event of a fire. Fire safety plans must include identification of significant fire hazards. OSHA standards for shipyard employment require that fire watches remain in the hot work area for at least 30 minutes after completion of the hot work unless the employer or its representative surveys the exposed area and makes a determination that there is no further fire hazard.
The chief engineer of the Natchez told investigators that while he was on board the vessel on the day of the fire, he witnessed the hot work in the generator space. He said he had the hot work contractor personnel and Natchez crewmembers place a piece of sheet metal on the side of the port generator. The port generator was located about 3 feet from the hot work area, and the chief engineer was concerned that sparks from the cutting would hit it. Although the chief engineer was aware of the combustible material near the hot work, he did not raise any concerns or have them moved from the generator space.
The vessel owner’s director of operations informed investigators that the company always relied on the contractor conducting hot work on their vessels to have a hot work policy in place and enforce it. Investigators found that the hot work contractor had no written safety policy or procedure in place for the employees to review and follow when preparing for and conducting hot work on board a vessel. All directions regarding the safety preparation of the area for hot work were passed verbally to the employees by the project superintendent.
The project superintendent told investigators that he evaluated the generator space before the hot work and determined that it was safe based on his 40 years of work experience conducting hot work. In addition, the project superintendent, the employee conducting the hot work, and the employee who served as the fire watch told investigators that they were unaware of the OSHA regulations concerning the risk of having combustible material near hot work
Lessons learned
The NTSB has investigated multiple fires following the completion of hot work within a space that were determined to be caused by a smoldering fire.
- A smoldering fire is formed when combustible material ignites, but the combustion proceeds slowly and steadily on the material’s surface with little heat and no smoke or flame.
- A smoldering fire is not easily detected, and depending upon its surroundings, it can last for hours after the initial ignition and can quickly grow into a flaming fire with no warning.
- A smoldering fire can long outlast the time a fire watch observes an area following hot work. Therefore, it is critical to evaluate work areas for fire hazards and ensure that combustibles are relocated or protected with flameproofed covers/curtains or otherwise shielded with sheet metal. In addition, crewmembers involved in hot work should be trained to identify hazards such as combustibles and to take action to remove or protect them from hot work.
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