In the early hours of 12 September 2012, the fishing factory trawler Amaltal Columbia was fishing off the Canterbury coast when fire broke out in the fishmeal bagging room on the fish processing deck.
The master made a Mayday call, and two nearby fishing vessels were requested to stand by the Amaltal Columbia to assist.
Despite the fire-fighting efforts of the crew, it was necessary for them to abandon ship. The entire crew were transferred to the assisting vessels, one of which took the Amaltal Columbia under tow to the port of Lyttelton.
The New Zealand Fire Service met the vessel on arrival and subsequently declared the fire 'out'. Nobody was seriously injured but the vessel was extensively damaged.
The Commission found that the fire was seated amongst bales of polypropylene bags that were stored in the fishmeal bagging room, but was unable to establish with any certainty what started the fire.
The Commission also found that the Amaltal Columbia's design and systems for the prevention, detection, containment and fighting of a fire met the standards of the applicable maritime rules; however, there were some aspects that could have been improved, and the consequences of the fire could have been lessened, with a more risk-based approach to operations.
Key lessons arising from this accident included:
- the early detection of fires is critical to preventing their taking hold and spreading
- older-style fluorescent light fittings are more prone to failure and likely to start a fire than more modern fittings. Operators of older ships should consider the risk of not replacing such lights with more modern and safer lights
arrangements that are designed to close off a space and contain a fire need to be quick, easy and intuitive to use, taking account of the conditions the crew are likely to encounter in a real fire
- the use of fire-retardant materials in the construction and fit-out of spaces on board ships will help to prevent the ignition and spreading of fires.
