Plea not to cut marine fire-fighting service, as fires remain greatest threat

The UK maritime professionals’ union Nautilus International is urging the government to reverse cuts to at-sea fire-fighting services after new research revealed that ship fires are the biggest threat to safety in European waters. A study published by the Finnish Transport Safety Agency shows that almost 800 ship fires occurred in European waters between 2004 and 2014 – 10 per cent of which were classified as “serious”.