Arco Avon (2015)

Classification

• Incident Type: Fire
• Severity: High
• Casualty classification: Very Serious Marine Casualty

Vessel Details

Incident Details

The report records one fatality but does not provide separate counts for non-fatal injuries or missing persons. No economic damage estimate is given.

Key facts

• The fire began at 23:12 BST on 18 August 2015 while Arco Avon was loading sand off Great Yarmouth.
• The third engineer was attempting to repair a leaking low-pressure fuel return pipe and was fatally burned.
• MAIB investigators concluded that sparks from a portable angle grinder ignited atomised fuel and fuel-soaked clothing.
• The crew activated the engine-room carbon-dioxide system, but the vessel lost main power and remained at anchor for nine days.

Narrative

Arco Avon was a UK-flagged suction dredger operated by Hanson Aggregates Marine Limited. The vessel left Dagenham at about 12:00 BST on 18 August 2015 and proceeded to a sand-loading area approximately 12 nautical miles off Great Yarmouth. Loading began at about 21:24. During dredging, the engine room was manned by a single engineer officer, and there had been no further communication between the bridge team and the third engineer before the fire.

At 23:12, a fire detector indicated a fire in the engine room. The third engineer called the bridge from the machinery control room and reported that he had been injured. He had to pass through the fire to reach the main deck, where the crew found him badly burned. Examination of the scene found a defective low-pressure fuel return pipe beneath the floor plates near No. 2 generator, together with an angle grinder and other repair tools. The MAIB concluded that the third engineer had attempted to remove a support and make a temporary repair while the main engine was running. Fuel under pressure atomised from the damaged pipe, soaked his overalls, and was ignited by high-energy sparks from the angle grinder.

The crew prepared a fire team, issued a Mayday, and requested evacuation of the injured engineer. Dense smoke and heat prevented entry into the engine room, so the fixed carbon-dioxide system was activated. About half of the cylinders initially failed to operate and were activated manually. The fire was brought under control, but the vessel lost main power. An RNLI lifeboat reached Arco Avon at 00:13 on 19 August, and a rescue helicopter took the third engineer to hospital at 01:37. He died from his injuries later that day. Arco Avon remained at anchor with dredging equipment partially deployed for nine days before being taken under tow and delivered to a repair facility.

Sequence of events

Contributing factors

Investigation

The Marine Accident Investigation Branch investigated the fire and published its report, Report on the investigation of a fire in the engine room on the suction dredger Arco Avon. The report concluded that the third engineer was attempting to repair a failed fuel pipe when pressurised fuel ignited, and that sparks from a portable angle grinder were the probable ignition source. It also identified the absence of a formal risk assessment or permit to work, together with lone-working and communication practices, as contributing circumstances.

References

• MAIB report: Report on the investigation of a fire in the engine room on the suction dredger Arco Avon

Related

• Arco Avon
• North Sea
• Hanson Aggregates Marine Limited
• Bureau Veritas
• Marine Accident Investigation Branch
• Fire

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