Engine Room Fire While in Port
A 30,000 GT tanker is alongside a terminal discharging cargo. At 1430 a fire is reported in the engine room auxiliary boiler area. The engine room is unmanned at the time; the duty engineer is on rounds elsewhere. The fixed CO2 system is available but the engine room is not yet sealed. Two crew are unaccounted for. The terminal has a fire brigade, and the port authority requires notification of any fire. Cargo discharge is in progress through two manifolds, and the vessel has 12,000 tonnes of cargo remaining. The wind is light, blowing from the vessel toward the terminal.
1. Set out the immediate command decisions and the order in which you would take them, explaining the reasoning.
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Order of decisions:
- Alarm and muster. Sound the general alarm, muster the crew, take a head count, and establish the bridge as command centre. Account for the two missing crew - this is the highest priority because life safety comes first.
- Stop cargo operations and disconnect. Stop discharge, close the manifold valves, and inform the terminal so it can stop its pumps. This reduces the fire risk and prevents cargo from feeding the fire.
- Isolate and boundary-cool. Close the engine room openings, shut down fuel supply to the boiler, and boundary-cool the surrounding spaces. Do not release CO2 until the space is sealed and the head count is complete, because releasing CO2 into an unsealed space is ineffective and lethal to anyone inside.
- Notify. Inform the port authority and terminal fire brigade as required, and request shore assistance.
- Prepare for evacuation if the fire cannot be contained, and keep the crew clear of the terminal side given the wind direction.
The reasoning is that life safety and cargo isolation come before firefighting tactics, and CO2 release requires a sealed space.
2. Explain when and how you would release the fixed CO2 system, and the risks of doing so.
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CO2 is released only when:
- The space is fully sealed - all openings, doors, and ventilation closed.
- All personnel are accounted for and confirmed out of the space.
- The fire is confirmed and cannot be controlled by other means.
- The master has authorised release, and the release procedure in the vessel's fire plan has been followed.
Risks: CO2 displaces oxygen and is lethal to anyone in the space; an unsealed space allows the gas to escape and the fire to re-flash; releasing too early may not extinguish the fire and wastes the fixed supply; and the space must not be reopened until it has cooled and been ventilated.
Given the engine room is not yet sealed and two crew are unaccounted for, release must wait. The master should use boundary cooling and shore assistance meanwhile, and prepare the CO2 release only once the space is sealed and the head count is complete.