A fire far out in the deep ocean may be a mariner’s greatest fear. However one thing is for certain, and that’s these fires are becoming one of the biggest safety concerns for insurers. Heavy Lift reports how the focus is increasingly on reducing lithium battery fire risks in the marine environment. Especially as many older vessels may lack suitable fire suppression systems.
Insurers Should Not Understate Lithium Battery Fire Risks
Heavy Lift continues by explaining there were over 200 reported marine fire incidents during 2022, accounting for 18% of all claims. The numbers include onboard fires regardless of their nature, although we do know that lithium-ion incidents are especially difficult to suppress.
Extinguishing these outbreaks promptly is the best way of reducing lithium battery fire risks after they erupt. However, it may take several hours to get to the base of a fire on a large vessel. Moreover, ship size and design may make fire detection and suppression more challenging.
The situation becomes even more challenging if circumstances force a crew to abandon their ship. No wonder 64 vessels have been lost to fires in the past five years. Where should the marine industry start to address this?
Fixing the Problem by Filtering Out Risky Cargo
Safe lithium-ion battery design, and quality management systems should almost entirely eliminate the possibility of thermal runaway. Captain Rahul Khannais, global head of marine risk consulting at Allianz Commercial has a suggestion.
Khannais believes mis-declaration of cargo, including chemicals, batteries, and charcoal contribute to 25% of all serious incidents onboard container ships. A lack of critical information may hamper firefighting efforts, he says.
Some companies try to avoid higher shipping rates by labeling fireworks as toys, and lithium-ion batteries as computer parts, for example. These may not burn more frequently than other cargoes. However, when they do catch alight, crew have a serious fire on their hands.
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