Fire on the Fremantle Highway

The car freighter Fremantle Highway, which caught fire off the Dutch coast on the night of 25 to 26 July, was brought into the nearest Dutch port of Eemshaven and moored there after more than a week, during which the ship was in a critical condition. This incident alarmed coastal residents in particular for days, as there were fears of an environmental disaster due to the proximity to the Wadden Sea UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The burning car freighter is already listing slightly, photo: Dutch Coast Guard

A fire broke out on one of the vehicle decks of the Panama-flagged car carrier Fremantle Highway, which is almost 60,000 GT in size and 200 metres long and was travelling from Bremerhaven 27 kilometres north of the island of Ameland. The ship, owned by Japanese shipping company K-Line, was carrying 3783 new cars, including 498 electric vehicles, as well as other large vehicles. The fuel bunkers contained 1600 tonnes of heavy fuel oil and 200 tonnes of marine diesel. It was initially assumed that one of the electric vehicles was the cause of the fire. Whether this was actually the case remains to be determined by a detailed investigation.

As the fire could not be fought with on-board resources, not even with the support of tugs and salvage vessels that had arrived in the meantime, the 23 crew members were evacuated by the Dutch coastguard, with one of the seamen losing his life. There were also 16 injured. Most of the rescue was carried out by helicopter. Seven men jumped into the sea from a height of 30 metres. They were also rescued.

Once the crew had been evacuated, the damaged vessel was only cooled from the outside. This was to avoid the accumulation of a large amount of extinguishing water inside the vessel so as not to jeopardise its stability. The Fremantle Highway, which was still on fire, was then moved to a position further away from the tidal flats and the busy shipping lane. The ship was held there by tugs. Due to the threat of worsening weather conditions, it was finally decided to tow the car carrier, on which the last fires had apparently been extinguished, to Eemshaven, 64 kilometres away, where it arrived on 3 August. Unloading began immediately and the contaminated extinguishing water and fuel were later pumped out. Only after the work has been completed can a decision be made as to whether it is worth repairing or whether demolition is the only option. However, this case will not only keep insurers busy for some time to come.

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