Engine Room Fire Disables Car Carrier off Germany
Germany’s Central Command for Maritime Emergencies oversaw the overnight response to an engine room fire aboard a car carrier. A total of 63 emergency personnel, four ships, and two helicopters were involved in the operation to secure the vessel Thames Highway and ensure the fire was extinguished.
The vessel had departed Emden on Monday, January 26, and shortly after clearing the harbor, reported an engine room fire. The crew onboard moved quickly to seal off the engine room, and the ship was directed into an anchorage outside the port’s fairway.
Built in 2005, the Thames Highway is 7,750 dwt with a reported capacity of approximately 1,600 vehicles. It operates for "K" Line European Sea Highway Services (KESS), a short sea carrier. The vessel, which is registered in the Bahamas, had been heading for Grimsby in Great Britain. The German authorities report they were advised the ship was carrying 1,294 vehicles, of which 477 were electric cars. The ship has of 18 plus the pilot was still aboard.
The initial response to the fire was mounted with a six-person team from the Cuxhaven Fire Department that is specially trained in shipboard fires. They were airlifted to the car carrier, which was anchored northwest of Borkum and winched onto the deck. Additional firefighters from Emden and Wilhelmshaven were also dispatched to the vessel.
As of Tuesday morning, the German authorities reported the fire had been extinguished, but the vessel was disabled and unable to move under its own power. Initially, the Cuxhaven and Wilhelmshaven fire brigades remained on the vessel but were later removed by helicopter.
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As of late on Tuesday, the Dutch tug Waterstraat was alongside and beginning a tow back to port. Control over the incident had been transferred to the Emden Traffic Control Center to manage the tow after the fire was extinguished.
The Central Command for Maritime Emergencies center mounted a large response, remembering the July 2023 fire aboard the car carrier Fremantle Highway in the same general area. The Dutch Coastguard and other authorities were later criticized for a disorganized response to the fire, which caused the death of a crewmember who was forced to jump from the burning ship. The fire got out of control and burned for days before being extinguished, and the ship was finally towed to port for a salvage operation.
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