The Dutch Safety Board has called for a significant reform of maritime emergency response systems following a thorough review of the 2023 fire on the vehicle carrier Fremantle Highway. The investigation highlighted inadequate training and poor coordination among agencies, resulting in delayed responses that likely led to injuries among the crew. The report emphasized that the emergency response framework is poorly organized, causing misprioritization of calls and ineffective collaboration among different organizations.
During the Fremantle Highway incident, seven crew members were forced to jump from the burning ship, with heights reaching nearly 100 feet. The board noted that the focus on firefighting delayed the transition to search and rescue efforts, leaving the crew trapped and lifeboats unusable. Communication failures exacerbated the situation, with hospitals receiving late notifications and ambulances facing access delays.
The report recommends urgent improvements, including appointing a dedicated director to oversee emergency response coordination among the Ministries of Infrastructure, Defense, and Justice. It also calls for establishing a digital information exchange system to enhance communication and clarify the roles of maritime firefighting and rescue operations, aiming to prevent future incidents from suffering similar deficiencies.
