Fire Alert - Improving liveaboard fire safety for divers

Fires on liveaboards are extremely rare, however, a spate of recent blazes has shown how dangerous they can be – so what can we learn and how can we make life at sea safer for all divers?

In the space of a single year between June 2023 and June 2024, there were six liveaboard fires – two of which resulted in tragedy, with the loss of three British and one German divers’ lives.

These were not two-bit banana boats but high-end, well-appointed vessels, some of which had long and exemplary service records. The fires also occurred at a time of heightened safety concerns in the aftermath of the high-profile MV Conception disaster, which burned to the waterline off the coast of California in 2019, killing 33 diving guests and one crew member. It was the worst liveaboard disaster of all time.

Why, then, have these six tragic fires occurred in a time when there has been so much international focus on liveaboard safety? And what steps can we, as divers, take to protect ourselves or prevent further tragedy should we be faced with a fire at sea?

While we can take precautionary measures to prevent fire from breaking out, the actual source of ignition is, to a large extent, not especially relevant once the fire has taken hold.

What is vital to passenger safety is the period of time between the fire beginning and the alarm being raised, the presence of appropriate firefighting equipment, the ease of emergency egress, and the crew’s training in dealing with fires.

the mv conception scuba diving liveaboard on fire at night — The MV Conception fire was the worst liveaboard diaster in history (Photo: Ventura Country Sherrif’s Department/Twitter)

The Conception fire has been studied in great depth by the US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and failure in all of these factors has been well documented: there was no fire alarm nor roving night watch; firefighting equipment was not present or did not work; emergency exits were blocked and led into the same part of the boat – where the fire had begun and was at its strongest – and some of the crew were not adequately trained in emergency response.

This breakdown of multiple barriers in a protective system is known as the ‘Swiss cheese model of safety’. Each layer of protection is represented as a slice of cheese, with holes of varying sizes representing weaknesses in that part of the system. One or more can fail without serious consequence, but once the holes in all the barriers are aligned, catastrophic failure becomes inevitable.

Witness statements reported in the aftermath of the fires over the last year suggest similar themes were involved: failure of alarms and extinguishers; lack of crew training and response; no – or incomplete – safety briefing and muster drill; inability to find life jackets and broken RIBs.

SAFETY BRIEFING

It is vitally important that all passengers receive a safety briefing after boarding the boat – and before the vessel sets sail. This can sometimes create extra work for the dive staff and crew as guests arriving from different locations often arrive over the course of a whole day and into the wee small hours of the morning, but it shouldn’t make a difference – if you’re told after boarding that your briefing will happen after breakfast the next morning, then the first layer of the model is already failing.

At the very least, you should insist that you are given a briefing before you retire for the evening so that – should the worst happen – you know how to get out of your cabin.

The safety briefing, also known as a muster drill, must include escape routes and the location and operation of emergency exits. Check the signage in the passageways and make sure you know where all the exits are located, not just the one closest to you as you may need to use an alternate route in an emergency.

a fire extinguisher on board a boat — Is it full? Inspected? Sealed? Do you know how to use it? (Photo: Shutterstock)

Make sure you know how to work the handles of the doors or hatches and which way they open, and, if necessary, look or pass through them so you know precisely where you come out.

The location and operation of life jackets must be part of the briefing – in which you are required to put one on and buckle it up – and you should be taken to the vessel’s muster point, not just told where it is.

Not all emergencies are equal, however, and you should also be informed as to what instructions you will be given under what circumstances. ‘Abandon Ship’ is a last resort and may not be the most appropriate first option in every emergency.

SAFETY EQUIPMENT

Fire alarms and smoke detectors are essential on the modern liveaboard – and it’s your right to check that they are operational and when they were most recently tested.

Some – not all – have a test button so that you can at least ask the crew to demonstrate that the alarm sounds. Check for the presence of any manually operated fire alarms and, if not already demonstrated during the safety briefing, ask for a test, if possible.

Inexpensive, travel-friendly smoke and carbon monoxide detectors are widely available, and many divers, recognising that attention to health and safety measures are not universal, are bringing their own.

Every reputable liveaboard company will have fire extinguishers on board; most will have both personal devices stowed in the guest cabin and at least one larger cylinder in each room of the vessel.

Check that you know where your nearest are located and, although you can’t fully test them, give them the once-over as you might a scuba tank: check the general physical condition, the pressure gauge and the hose; look for the presence of, and damage to, the safety pin and anti-tamper seal if present; and check for an inspection label, which should have a recent date of inspection.

Don’t be afraid to ask a member of the crew for an explanation if the sticker is in a language you don’t understand.

EMERGENCY DRILL

If the worst should happen:

Raise the alert immediately and loudly. Don’t waste time looking for a crew member, just start shouting and, if there’s a manual alarm, get it activated.
Smoke and fire can spread within seconds. Don’t start searching for your belongings and don’t try to take your luggage with you.
Most fire victims succumb to smoke inhalation before fire. Be prepared to get down on your knees and crawl to the exit, if necessary.
If you wear glasses, take regular medication or require an inhaler, consider keeping them in a small waterproof bag or neck pouch so that you don’t have to search for them in the event of an emergency.
Follow the guidance of the crew when they give it – they know the boat and the best way out.
Never go back into a burning vessel. Ever.

BATTERIES AND CHARGING

Problems with rechargeable lithium-ion batters are well known. Damage, water ingress, and poorly manufactured non-standard batteries are all causes of ‘thermal runaway’, a chemical reaction inside the battery that leads to an explosive deflagration virtually impossible to extinguish.

But it’s not a new phenomenon, and although fingers have been waved at device overcharging after the recent fires, it might not actually be to blame. Details are scarce, but the fatal fire on board the Egyptian MV Hurricane in June 2023 and the fire that sank the MY Oceanic in Raja Ampat in March 2024 were both blamed on engine room fires.

Doubts have even been raised about the Conception disaster – initially blamed on charging devices by the NTSB, but a subsequent report by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) concluded it may have begun in a plastic waste bin, possibly due to an improperly extinguished cigarette.

The presence of manifold lithium battery-powered devices is still a problem, however, as not only are they themselves an ignition hazard, but if they are caught in a blaze, can increase the speed of its spread while simultaneously dumping toxic chemicals into the atmosphere.

multiple devices connected to electrical outlets on board the MV Conception liveaboard — *The fire on board Conception was initially blamed on overcharging, but may not have been (Photo: NTSB/Flickr)*

Problems can be mitigated by charging devices at the designated onboard charging stations, never charging in your room unattended or overnight, and never buying batteries from any other source than the original manufacturer.

CREW TRAINING

One issue that has been raised following some of the incidents over the last few years is the capability of the crew to fight a fire, or deal with an emergency, should one occur.

It’s important to note that not all people – even with training – will respond well when faced with an emergency, particularly the first time, but it is important the crew are as best prepared as possible.

With that in mind, you can ask in advance before booking your holiday what sort of training the crew and the dive guides undergo. It’s also worth asking what procedures are put in place for the presence of a roving night watch, one of the primary failures levelled against the captain of the Conception.

two boat crew men training how to use a fire hose at sea — Most top liveaboard crews will undergo fire-at-sea training (Photo: Shutterstock)

Many liveaboards travel between destinations overnight in which case the captain and one or more of the crew will be awake through the night regardless; others have extensive CCTV systems to monitor the vessel’s interior, but there’s no substitute for a person regularly walking through the vessel looking for the presence – and smell – of smoke.

Even with all these precautions in place, fires on boats happen. Why they happen could be due to poor maintenance or an unlucky spark, but there are measures we as divers can take to help prevent the worst from happening, and that starts with making sure the boat owners are putting in place the equipment and systems, training and drills, necessary to ensure the best possible outcome from a fire – or, indeed, any other incident that might happen out at sea.

THE FUTURE

There is a common safety phrase used in British transport announcements: ‘If you see it, say it, and we’ll sort it’. If you notice something is wrong on a liveaboard, or doesn’t feel right, tell somebody about it.

Spot something wrong during the muster drill and any decent crew will have it fixed before setting sail – it may be that you’ve spotted something that they themselves hadn’t noticed.

While we expect that all these precautions will be taken in advance, even those supposedly operating under the most stringent health and safety regimens are prone to lapses.

It should not be our responsibility to check any of these things, but if we, as divers, know what to look out for, and voice our concerns loudly enough, then the operators responsible will have no choice but to make sure that all of their obligations to passenger safety are fulfilled.