An insight into the causes and prevention of cargo fires

The Swedish Club, in conjunction with Dr Neil Sanders, partner in Burgoynes, recently published a study on the causes and prevention of cargo fires. Maritime Risk International looks at the subject of cargo fires and how the risks can be reduced for the future

When a fire breaks out on board a vessel there is no fire service ready to assist in extinguishing it – it is up to the crew themselves. The consequences can be catastrophic and all those who have worked on board a vessel are aware of the difficulties involved with managing a fire and the crucial importance of fire prevention. Many marine cargo fires and explosions are due to self-heating in some form. In general, self-heating occurs when an exothermic (heat-producing) chemical or biochemical reaction happens within a body of cargo. Loss of the heat produced by the reaction is restricted by the surrounding cargo, packaging, dunnage, containers etc. Due to restricted heat loss, the temperature within the cargo tends to increase. The rate of most chemical reactions increases with increasing temperature and it often roughly doubles for each 10°C rise in temperature. Therefore, the heating and the temperature rise can worsen, which can ultimately lead to a fire in the cargo and surrounding materials.