The U.S. Coast Guard published a safety bulletin regarding unsupervised phone charging on watercraft on September 12, 2019. In a nutshell, the Coast Guard warning says commercial boat operators must “limit unsupervised charging of cellphones and other electronic devices”. This this is an update of the preliminary report according to USA today,
Some Controversies Surrounding the Coast Guard Warning
The Coast Guard update suggests all six crew members were asleep on MV Conception when the fire started. However the boat owner’s attorneys say one checked the galley area a half hour before the fire started. But regulations require a crew member keep watch all night.
Therefore a Marine Board is trying to get to the bottom of what happened. The latest Coast Guard warning is not attempting to bypass this. However, it does suggest the authorities have identified a pressing safety issue. These are typically “related to vessel stability, the engine room, or lifesaving and firefighting equipment,” according to the board chairperson.
The Safety Highlights in the Interim Bulletin
The Coast Guard wants to ensure fire and safety equipment is operational, with emergency escapes clearly labelled and fully functional. Boat operators should moreover “reduce potential fire hazards and consider limiting the unsupervised charging of lithium-ion batteries”.
Crews must further understand their roles and “limit extensive use of power strips and extension cords,” the Coast Guard warning adds. Peter Goelz, former managing director of National Transportation Safety Board appears to support the suspicion of a lithium battery fire. “This is probably the worst-case scenario you could possibly have,” Santa Barbara County Sheriff Bill Brown adds. “Because you have a vessel that’s on the open sea in the middle of the night.
“Fire is the scourge of any ship. You therefore couldn’t ask for a worse situation.” We sense an urgent need to bottom out on what happened. The crew did their best but something went horribly wrong.
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