Spotlight on Ro-Ro Safety

This week at Maritime Reporter...

The importance of safety on ro-ro vessels comes under the spotlight.

The UK Marine Accident Investigation Branch released its report into the engine room fire on board the ro-ro Stena Europe and concluded that the ship’s crew were insufficiently trained to inspect engine fuel systems and the temperature measuring equipment used by the crew to monitor the engine exhaust insulation did not effectively identify any hot spots.

The Maritime and Coastguard Agency has since been requested to submit a paper to the IMO proposing the introduction of a requirement for the use of thermographic equipment to identify exposed high temperature surfaces.

Vessel design plays an important role in safety as explained by ClassNK this week. Vehicle carriers often have accommodation areas and life-saving equipment, such as lifeboats and liferafts, positioned above cargo holds, with ventilation ducts for the holds located close to the accommodation spaces. As a result, flames and smoke from a cargo hold fire can affect these critical areas and evacuation routes, potentially compromising crew safety. In collaboration with shipping companies and shipyards, ClassNK has compiled a list of countermeasures.

Also this week, Fred Finger, Senior Vice