FACTORS CONTRIBUTING TO FIRES IN SHIP ENGINE ROOMS

Engine room fires are a major cause of crew fatalities, one of the main contributors to ship casualties and result in the very costly accidents. The ship's engine room is an area where large quantities of flammable materials and potential ignition sources are constantly present within a confined space. The most common fire scenario is fuel leakage onto a hot surface, and the human factor is the root cause of most accidents on board.The research focuses on a holistic approach to fire safety, taking into account both human and technical factors. To introduce the problem, factors determining the risk of engine room fires were identified empirically and theoretically. Firstly, potential sources of engine room fires were identified with the use of thermography. A passive experiment of a fuel spill fire was also conducted. Visualization of fire development was presented using Pyrosim and Smoke View software.To emphasize the importance of the human factor in fire safety, results of ergonomic studies (including mental and physical workloads) were presented. In summary, correlations between human behaviour and technical factors were identified.