MSC Lirica on fire - Corfu

[john_galt]

MSC boards are showing the MSC Lirica on fire in Corfu. Found images in the internet. Looks dramatic.

 

Edited March 12, 2021 by john_galt

[SeaHunt]

[voljeep]

Passengers on Board ???

 

 

WOW - hope all are safe including crew ...

[john_galt]

"There were no injuries among the 51 crew who were on board the ship at the time of the incident.

From a preliminary assessment, there was no damage to the inside of the ship but only to her side due to the flames and the dense black smoke caused by the fiberglass lifeboats.

A full investigation is now in progress."

[Lady Arwen]

Wow, thank goodness no injuries.  Curious as to how this happened.  Fire on a cruiseship is one of my biggest fears.

[Astro Flyer]

MSC Lirica, an MSC Cruises ship, caught fire on Friday in Corfu, Greece, Luca Biondolillo, spokesperson for the cruise line, confirmed to USA TODAY.

"A fire on board MSC Lirica, which seems to be originated in an empty lifeboat on deck 6, was reported to the emergency services earlier today in Corfu where the ship is currently in warm layup," MSC said in a statement provided by Biondolillo. 

There were no injuries among the 51 crew members who were on board to maintain the ship. There were no passengers on board.
 

https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/cruises/2021/03/12/msc-lirica-cruise-ship-goes-up-flames-while-docked-corfu-greece/4663218001/

 

 

[john_galt]

 

 

Edited March 12, 2021 by john_galt

[Bertie Doe]

1 hour ago, Lady Arwen said:

  Fire on a cruiseship is one of my biggest fears.

 Fire on a cruiseship is only my second biggest fear.

[Lady Arwen]

50 minutes ago, john_galt said:

 

 

Thanks for sharing these photos 

[Lucky TGO]

Wow!! From the pictures It looks really bad. Good thing no one was hurt. I wonder how it started.

Tony

[chengkp75]

Very likely they were test running the lifeboat engines, and this one caught on fire.  The lifeboat engines, by design get very little use, so they frequently pump some oil through the engine and into the exhaust pipe, where it collects.  These are typically flexible accordion type stainless steel hoses, so they can run along the bottom of the boat.  The oil collects in the low point, and when the engine is run long enough for the exhaust gas to get really hot, the oil will light off, superheating the exhaust pipe, and catching anything nearby on fire.  I suspect a couple of engineers were going along the entire starboard side, starting all the boat engines, and letting them run while they went to the next, etc.  One of the boats they started a while back, caught fire.  It is a moderately common fault of boats that are not maintained in top condition, or that have been left for a while, like when a ship is in lay-up.

[Tak8]

Damage looks extensive.  Glad crew are ok.

 

[beg3yrs]

2 hours ago, Tak8 said:

Damage looks extensive.  Glad crew are ok.

 

Yes, glad the crew are OK. As a car guy, we like to say with a little buffing and bondo, she'll be as good as new (not).

[Lucky TGO]

2 hours ago, beg3yrs said:

Yes, glad the crew are OK. As a car guy, we like to say with a little buffing and bondo, she'll be as good as new (not).

Hi beg3yrs,

I take it you don’t have a Mercedes. 😁😁

Tony

[OceanPatter]

Thank you, chengkp75, for your insightful analysis, as always.

[Aplmac]

14 hours ago, Tak8 said:

Damage looks extensive.  Glad crew are ok.

 

 

[AF-1]

Sad to see this;  pray that no major damage to crew or ship.  

[chengkp75]

15 minutes ago, Aplmac said:

 

That's mostly smoke damage from the thick, toxic smoke from the burning fiberglass of the boat.  I see some balcony damage, but nothing serious.

[Aplmac]

2 minutes ago, chengkp75 said:

That's mostly smoke damage from the thick, toxic smoke from the burning fiberglass of the boat.  I see some balcony damage, but nothing serious.

Good thing it happened now..

now that there's still a few months before any real cruising.

 

They'll have her patched up and smelling good

in a month's time.

[GonzoWCS]

15 hours ago, chengkp75 said:

Very likely they were test running the lifeboat engines, and this one caught on fire.  The lifeboat engines, by design get very little use, so they frequently pump some oil through the engine and into the exhaust pipe, where it collects.  These are typically flexible accordion type stainless steel hoses, so they can run along the bottom of the boat.  The oil collects in the low point, and when the engine is run long enough for the exhaust gas to get really hot, the oil will light off, superheating the exhaust pipe, and catching anything nearby on fire.  I suspect a couple of engineers were going along the entire starboard side, starting all the boat engines, and letting them run while they went to the next, etc.  One of the boats they started a while back, caught fire.  It is a moderately common fault of boats that are not maintained in top condition, or that have been left for a while, like when a ship is in lay-up.

I luv having you here to explain it.  As an Aero type learning about the maritime side of things is very interesting to me.

 

Thanks

[beg3yrs]

12 hours ago, Lucky TGO said:

Hi beg3yrs,

I take it you don’t have a Mercedes. 😁😁

Tony

Nope, spend all my money on cruises!

[Roberto256]

2 hours ago, chengkp75 said:

That's mostly smoke damage from the thick, toxic smoke from the burning fiberglass of the boat.  I see some balcony damage, but nothing serious.

 

That will buff right out!   🙂

 

Thank you for you always valuable insight, both in this thread, and many others.

[gmjc2]

Or someone got fed up with no passengers to tip and threw a cig butt in the lifeboat!

[ALWAYS CRUZIN]

17 hours ago, chengkp75 said:

Very likely they were test running the lifeboat engines, and this one caught on fire.  The lifeboat engines, by design get very little use, so they frequently pump some oil through the engine and into the exhaust pipe, where it collects.  These are typically flexible accordion type stainless steel hoses, so they can run along the bottom of the boat.  The oil collects in the low point, and when the engine is run long enough for the exhaust gas to get really hot, the oil will light off, superheating the exhaust pipe, and catching anything nearby on fire.  I suspect a couple of engineers were going along the entire starboard side, starting all the boat engines, and letting them run while they went to the next, etc.  One of the boats they started a while back, caught fire.  It is a moderately common fault of boats that are not maintained in top condition, or that have been left for a while, like when a ship is in lay-up.

Are they not water cooled engines? If out of the water do they not connect water lines to the water intake?

[chengkp75]

2 minutes ago, ALWAYS CRUZIN said:

Are they not water cooled engines? If out of the water do they not connect water lines to the water intake?

Yes, they are water cooled engines, but fresh water cooled.  No one, except pleasure boat owners want "raw water" (fresh, sea, or brackish) as the engine cooling medium, so they use an intermediary fresh water system, just like the big engines on the ship.  This fresh water loop is routed to a "keel cooler" that is then cooled by the sea water.  However, the exhaust pipes are not the typical "wet type" exhausts found on inboard pleasure boats, as this is subject to too much corrosion.  This is where the fire likely started, in the insulated, but not water cooled exhaust pipe.  For short periods, the keel cooler can be cooled adequately by the air.