Fire in pump room on tanker Bitfjord

Location: Loading berth at the Port of Dundee, Scotland.

• From: Marine Accident Investigation Branch
• Published: 23 January 2015

• Vessel type: Merchant vessel 100 gross tons or over
• Report type: Completed preliminary assessment
• Date of occurrence: 28 April 2005

Completed PE Summary: Bitfjord

A short summary of the accident and action taken:

	Merchant Vessel/Accident Details
Vessel Name	Bitfjord
Registered Owner/Manager	Tarbit Shipping
Port of Registry	Skarhamn
Flag	Sweden
Type	Tanker
Classification Society	Lloyds Register
Length Overall	85.2m
Gross Tonnage	1573
Date/Time	28/04/2005, 0830
Location of Incident	Dundee harbour area
Incident Type	Fire
Persons Onboard	8 crew
Injuries/Fatalities	None
Damage/Pollution	Minor Damage/None

Synopsis

The bitumen carrier, Bitfjord, suffered a small fire in the pump room while it was alongside her loading berth in the Port of Dundee . The fire was caused by spontaneous combustion of oil-soaked lagging.

Action taken

The Chief Inspector of Marine Accidents has written to the vessel’s owner with advice on the following:

• Correct entry procedures for enclosed spaces

• The provision of effective protective coating on cargo pipework insulation to prevent contamination by flammable liquids

• The importance of inspection and maintenance to avoid flammable liquid spills.

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Published 23 January 2015