Fire Brigade News

Thousands of mourners and protesters marched in the Lebanese capital on Friday to remember those killed in a huge port blast three years ago, as religious leaders and rights groups decried the lack of accountability amid a stalled investigation.The explosion killed at least 220 people and wounded thousands when hundreds of tonnes of ammonium nitrate stored in a warehouse detonated just after 6 p.m. (1600 GMT) on Aug. 4, 2020, sending a huge cloud over the city.Despite the devastation…

Italy has arrested three people who they believe trafficked up to 200 migrants aboard a wooden boat that smashed apart on rocks off southern Italy on Sunday, killing at least 64 people, police said on Tuesday. Lieutenant Colonel Alberto Lippolis said a Turkish man and two Pakistani nationals had sailed the boat from Turkey to Italy despite the terrible weather, and were identified by survivors as "the main culprits of the tragedy"."According to initial investigations, they allegedly asked the migrants for about 8…

The most important of all international maritime safety conventions is the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS). The first version was adopted at a conference in London in 1914. The catalyst for this conference was the sinking of the Titanic on her first voyage in April 1912, which cost the lives of more than 1,500 passengers. This was the beginning of the journey that put in place a regulatory framework to protect those who work and travel by sea.Whilst the sinking of the Titanic was not fire-related…

About the Author: Captain Rahul Khanna is Global Head of Marine Risk Consulting at Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty. A marine professional with 26 years of experience within the Shipping and Maritime industry, Captain Khanna served more than 14 years on board merchant ships in all ranks, including Master of large oil tankers trading worldwide. Although shipping losses have more than halved over the past decade fires on board vessels remain among the biggest safety issues for the maritime industry.

The London Fire Brigade has added a pair of new fireboats on the Thames as part of a £40 million investment made by City Hall to expand the Brigade’s fleet of equipment and vehicles.The new 16.2-meter-long boats, Tanner and Errington, are named after Auxiliary Fireman Harry Errington and Auxiliary Firewoman Gillian Tanner, who in the Second World War were both awarded medals for bravery. The call signs for the boats are H23A and H23B, a reference to Adam Mere and Billy Faust, two London firefighters who died fighting a fire in 2004.Built by Holyhead Marine…

Fire ripped through a superyacht in southwest England on Saturday, sending thick plumes of black smoke into the sky and briefly releasing the burning vessel to drift across its marina.Police and fire officials said the 85 foot (26 meter) yacht in Torquay, Devon, was "well alight" and the fire brigade said the vessel contained about 8,000 liters of diesel fuel, prompting local areas and nearby beaches to be cleared."Due to levels of smoke and fumes we are asking residents in the area to keep their doors and windows shut at this time," Devon & Cornwall police said.

Hamburg Fire Fighting Vessels Dresden and Prag sport diesel-electric hybrid propulsion and battery systems from EST-Floattech.After the first 100 days of operation, operator Flotte Hamburg is reports it is satisfied with the two new firefighting ships Dresden and Prague: "Due to the full approval for the use of the EST battery system 'Green Orca 1050' on inland waterway vessels, which was already available at the start of the project, the first hybrid ships of the Hamburg fleet…

Firefighters battling for a third day a blaze on a ferry sailing from Greece to Italy recovered on Sunday the body of a passenger listed as missing, Greek authorities said.It is the first reported fatality after rescuers managed to take at least 281 out of 292 passengers and crew to safety from a blaze which broke out on the Italian-flagged Euroferry Olympia early on Friday.The ferry had been on its way to the Italian port of Brindisi from Igoumenitsa in Greece when it was engulfed…

A Bangladesh ferry carrying around 50 passengers collided with a cargo vessel and sank on Sunday in the Shitalakhsya River south of the capital Dhaka, leaving at least 26 people dead and a few still missing, officials said.Twenty one bodies had been recovered on Monday. The ferry sank just after it departed from the industrial Narayanganj district about 20 km (12 miles) from Dhaka, to Munshiganj, said Mustain Billah, Narayanganj district administrator."Most of the bodies were found inside the sunken boat after it was dragged to the bank…

A hybrid-electric tour vessel caught fire off Norway's southern coast on Thursday, and while the flames have been extinguished, local authorities fear the situation could deteriorate in the days ahead.Authorities said the fire broke out in or near starboard battery compartment and engine room aboard the 24-meter catamaran MS Brim, operated by Brim Explorer, on Thursday afternoon, while the vessel was west of the island Nordre Søster off Fredrikstad in Østfold. There were no passengers on board…

The first design project is the 50-m Explorer yacht, designed by Hydro TecThe Duò family, with their hundred years of experience in military, paramilitary and civil shipbuilding, has ventured into the luxury boat sector. The Vittoria Shipyard has launched Vittoria Yachts, the new division, dedicated to designing and building yachts, able to draw on the production capacity and know-how developed over almost a century of business experience, adding over 870 units to the new market segment of luxury yachting.Leading Vittoria Yachts on their journey are Paolo Duò…

The Italian company EmiControls has been working on innovative fire protection solutions worldwide since 2011. With the FT10e water mist turbine, EmiControls has launched a product that gives companies more safety in the fight against fires. This is a brief Case Study of an FT10e installation at the Recycling Center Santini in Northern Italy.EmiControls develops stationary and mobile firefighting turbines. EmiControls combines the high efficiency of water mist with an advanced turbine technology.When extinguishing fires, water mist achieves a higher cooling effect than a traditional water jet.

The Hamburg Port Authority (HPA) has ordered two more fire-fighting vessels following the delivery of modern fireboat, the "Branddirektor Westphal".As with the previous order, both vessels will be fitted with Schottel thrusters – in this case, two Schottel Rudderpropellers and one Schottel Transverse Thruster. These will enable maximum maneuverability in the restricted fairway of the Port of Hamburg.This mobility is also guaranteed in situations that require fast response times. The special vessels, operated by Flotte Hamburg, a wholly owned subsidiary of the HPA, are currently under construction at Damen Shipyards.Each of the fireboats features two rudder-propellers type SRP 150 L FP (380 kW each) with a propeller diameter of 1.10 m and a transverse thruster type STT 60 FP (100 kW).

The Hamburg Port Authority (HPA) has chosen SCHOTTEL for two more fire-fighting vessels. Each of the fireboats features two rudderpropellers type SRP 150 L FP (380 kW each) with a propeller diameter of 1.10 m and a transverse thruster type STT 60 FP (100 kW). Each of these is driven by an electric motor. The rudderpropellers type SRP 150 are equipped with SCHOTTEL’s new highly efficient SDC40 nozzle. This thruster configuration achieves a free running speed of 12 knots.The two…

A fire onboard an oil tanker at Norway's Sture crude export terminal has been put out, the fire service told Reuters on Friday.The fire broke out in the engine room of the Dubai Harmony tanker during loading at the Equinor oil terminal on Norway's west coast, according to rescue services and police.No one was injured, and the terminal's output was not affected by the incident, although there was a partial evacuation of staff."The head of the response team on the site confirms that the fire was put out at 1257 CET (1057 GMT)…

The project team of Blue Water Shipping, a provider of freight transport solutions, in Marseille, France was entrusted with an exciting job for its client Societe De Constructions, De Reparations Navales Et De Mecanique (SOCARENAM).In early january, a fire pump vessel (weighing 128 metric tons/measuring 24.9 x 6.9 x 3.3 metres) was to be shipped from Boulogne-sur-Mer to Toulon Brégaillon to be operated by Marseille Marine Fire Brigade Division.Blue Water’s scope of the project included engineering, chartering of vessel, loading in Boulogne-sur-Mer, sea fastening and discharging in Toulon Brégaillon. “Due to careful planning and a successful teamwork between Blue Water and SOCARENAM, the entire operation went as planned. This was the second shipment that we have arranged for SOCARENAM.

A state-of-the-art propulsion system helps to maek Branddirektor Westphal as one of the most high-tech fireboats in Europe.The vessel, operated by Flotte Hamburg GmbH & Co. KG, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hamburg Port Authority (HPA), and built at the Fassmer shipyard in Lower Saxony, is scheduled to enter service in the Port of Hamburg shortly.The new vessel is fitted with SCHOTTEL thrusters: two SCHOTTEL Rudderpropellers and two SCHOTTEL Transverse Thrusters.The Branddirektor Westphal is powered by two Caterpillar C18 engines, each with an output of 500 kW.

The Swedish Club and Stena Line have completed a major Emergency Response Training Exercise, designed to test how Stena’s own emergency procedures integrate with those of the authorities and support services in the event of a major incident. The round table exercise took place last week at the Swedish Sea Rescue Society headquarters, with over sixty expert contributors taking part. The drill, jointly planned and conducted by the Club and the Swedish Joint Rescue Coordination Centre (JRCC)…

Almost 200 passengers and crew on a cruise along the Danube river had to be evacuated from their vessel on Monday when a blaze broke out on board, the Austrian fire service said. The passengers, who were on a trip with German river-cruise line A-Rosa from Linz to Budapest, were taken off and moved to a nearby ship after the blaze started close to the village of Schoenbuehel-Aggsbach in Lower Austria, a fire brigade spokesman said. No-one was hurt. Twelve fire trucks and several boats with around 150 fire fighters fought the blaze before bringing it under control after two hours. Five ship crew members who tried to extinguish the fire were treated for smoke inhalation in hospital, a spokesman for the Red Cross said.

Falck is due to open a new training center on the Maasvlakte in 2018. It will become an international, high-profile safety-knowledge center for public and industrial fire brigades, the offshore, maritime sector and wind industry. The first steps have been taken January 24, 2017 with Falck and the Port of Rotterdam Authority entering into a contract under which the site is issued to Falck. Falck, which specializes in safety and safety training, is set to leave its current site on the Beerweg when its lease with the Port of Rotterdam Authority ends in the spring of 2018.

The International Group of P&I Clubs and the shipping line members of the Cargo Incident Notification System (CINS) have recently produced a new set of guidelines for the carriage of calcium hypochlorite in containers. UK Club risk assessor, David Nichol, discusses why it was considered necessary to update guidance for a cargo with a history of being implicated in ship fires as well as the wider problem of the mis-declaration of dangerous goods. If a fire breaks out at sea, the crew do not have the option of simply evacuating the building and waiting for the fire brigade to turn up. The crew have to deal with it themselves. Locating…

A Lake Assault fireboat, owned and operated by the Lake Vermilion Fire Brigade, provided support for wildland firefighting efforts during the Foss Lake wildfire near Ely, Minn. earlier this spring. The 33-foot craft was used to haul up to 20-person crews, and their canoes and equipment to staging areas to fight the blaze. The fire, located approximately 10 miles west of Ely, Minnesota in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW), consumed a total of 936 acres and was contained and controlled on June 2nd.

A new lifeboat has been donated to the Hellenic Rescue Team (HRT) by fellow International Maritime Rescue Federation (IMRF) members the Norwegian Society for Sea Rescue (RS), and the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. ‘Norway II’ is the second lifeboat to be donated to HRT and follows ‘Norway I’ that has operated since September last year in the Aegean Sea around Kos. In her speech on Lesvos, the ‘godmother’ of the boat, Mrs. Marit Nybakk, Vice President of the Parliament…