Heavy weather and an improperly secured cargo of lithium-ion battery energy storage system (BESS) units led to two fires aboard the 410-foot-long cargo vessel Genius Star XI as it was transiting the North Pacific Ocean on Christmas Day 2023, causing $3.8 million in damages.
Investigators determined that improperly secured lashing belts failed, allowing 41 lithium-ion BESS units to shift in the cargo holds, leading to internal structural deformation.
This damage caused batteries in three of the units to enter thermal runaway, when a lithium-ion cell enters an uncontrollable, self-heating state that can exceed 572°F, causing the two fires within the holds.
After the first fire, the crew activated the vessel’s fixed carbon dioxide fire-extinguishing system and diverted to the nearest port, Dutch Harbor, Alaska, for assistance.
The fire was extinguished. While en route to Dutch Harbor, a second fire occurred in another cargo hold on December 28. The crew cooled the affected area externally
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