Fire in Ship’s Gymnasium Due to Poor Quality Capacitors

Fire onboard ships can occur at the most unlikeliest of the places. One such fire incident took place in a container ship vessel at one of the least expected places.

The fire occurred in a container ship’s gymnasium. The crew responded properly to the event and quickly extinguished it. As a result of the fire, there was considerable smoke and fire damage to the bulkheads, ceiling and some sports equipment.

Result of investigation

1 The crew had not used the gymnasium for three days prior to the incident, but the lights were left on;
2 It is suspected that a defective electrolytic capacitor of a panel ceiling light had overheated, and the escaping hot electrolyte and molten plastic sheath fell on and ignited a plastic mat lying on the deck directly below it;

fire
3 The Chief Engineer reported that he had already detected poor quality capacitors from the same manufacturer in the past, but he had not reported this matter to the company. A check revealed a further eleven capacitors which showed evidence of overheating and ejection of electrolyte.

Corrective/preventative actions

1 All capacitors of the same brand were removed from light fittings on board;

fire in gym

2 Crew members were reminded that the prompt reporting of even relatively insignificant faults or abnormalities can prevent accidents and generally improve health and safety;

3 Lights in unoccupied spaces and compartments not forming part of machinery spaces, accesses and/or working areas should be switched off when not required;

fire in gym 3
4 A safety alert was sent to all vessels with instructions to discuss the incident at the next safety meeting and to implement the above practices.

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One Comment

  1. These capacitors dry out in time and must be changed or removed completely if you cannot get a proper spare, its function is to correct the power factor,in my experience dont let these capacitor to exceed five years to avoid such flash overs,I have not observed any
    Incidence of fire, but a lot of smoke, probably from the capacitor electrolyte,the smoke is abnoxious and may cause health problems.

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