Cargo Ship AFADJA Engine Room Fire off Cyprus, Crew Safe
A fire broke out in the engine room of the Somali-flagged cargo ship AFADJA on 12 November while the vessel was about eight nautical miles southeast of Cape Gata in Limassol Bay, off the southern coast of Cyprus in the eastern Mediterranean. Cape Gata is the southern tip of the Akrotiri peninsula, just south of Limassol port. All 12 crew members on board are safe.
Cyprus’s Joint Rescue Coordination Centre (JRCC) led the response. A helicopter from the Police Air Operations Unit, two National Guard patrol vessels, a Port and Marine Police speedboat and the Fire Service’s special rescue unit were sent to the scene, along with the firefighting tug EDT Aether.
From the CrewMirror Blog
The JRCC said the fire was put out with the help of the tug and a Port and Marine Police vessel. The ship was then towed to a safe area in Limassol Bay. The cause of the fire has not been reported, and there was no mention of pollution. Engine-room fires remain one of the most common serious incidents at sea; a recent BIMCO warning on delayed repairs and engine-room fire risk pointed to poor maintenance and postponed repairs as frequent causes.
The incident comes two weeks after ten crew were rescued when the cargo ship AS Dream sank off Paphos, also in Cypriot waters.
CrewMirror Takeaway
Quick action and outside help kept this crew safe. Engine-room teams benefit from regular fire drills, working quick-closing valves and fixed fire systems, and from reporting fuel or oil leaks before they become a fire.
