If you go out with a group of experienced yacht captains, if you ask them, what is the most afraid of happening when going out to sea? In the list listed in the answer, weather conditions may be one, electronic or mechanical equipment failure is also a cause for concern, and encountering pirates can also count as one. However, in most cases, the captain's biggest concern is still the fire on the ship.

If there is a major fire in a yacht, few cases show that the outcome is OK. Even if the place where the fire occurs is in or near the port dock, the rescue method is still not effective. Due to too many uncertain factors on the yacht, such as thousands of gallons of fuel, plastic parts can easily become poisonous gas when they catch fire, the internal structure is complex, there are multiple enclosed spaces, etc., in the event of a fire, the escape of personnel in the cabin The hope becomes slim, and external rescue is also extremely difficult. The fire on the yacht is classified as the most dangerous type of fire.

For these reasons, many fire departments do not board ships to put out fires unless they have to do so to rescue people trapped on board. Even the U. S. Coast Guard (USCG) has a strict rescue rule against crews boarding another burning vessel if the on-board fire is not life-threatening.

After the fire on the yacht, in the fire fighting operation, the rescue personnel will first try their best to solve the dangerous situation involving endangering the life safety of the people on board, and then try to control the fire range within the scope of the yacht that has caught fire, and take measures to isolate and protect the surrounding environment to avoid pollution. The heroic (or stupid) act of protecting the property on the yacht is not common and not wise.

The following suggestions may have a good effect on preventing yacht fire, and each step will add a guarantee for their own safe travel:

The right preventive work

Minimizing damage means that your crew must respond quickly and accurately to a fire, preventing it from spreading and threatening the safety of those on board.

While most crew members will complete the Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Crew Convention (STCW Convention), including a full day of fire training. But this will give you a misconception that makes you believe that this is all your crew needs to be trained to eliminate danger.

Todd Kollar is an STCW fire training specialist in Alaska, USA. He said, "In order to meet the requirements of the STCW Convention, you may be required to complete fire training in one day. In Alaska, where there are" remote "everywhere, I spent three days on fire training for basic safety training, and the whole day was only on the use of fire extinguishers. However, our high-intensity training program still cannot cover all the safety preparation elements."

"An STCW convention is not all about safety training, it's just a primer on safety training. This means giving crews more basic fire learning materials and encouraging them to learn more. Owners and captains want a safety maintenance plan, regular fire drills and remedial measures in the event of a hazard, and a certificate is not a substitute for all of these requirements."

"We certificated a lot of crews who were trained by the STCW Convention, but not a lot of yacht crews would come back for additional fire training," explains Charlock Clifford, who is a fire training school administrator at the Maritime Academy in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

For the past four years, the captain of the 51-meter Lazy Z, Kitcher Brad, and the entire crew have retaken fire training every year.

"I was surprised when Resolve told us that the Lazy Z was the only yacht that took part in additional firefighting training every year," explained Captain Kitcher.

In addition, in addition to fire safety training, your ship also needs a lot of testing services, and should do a specific fire safety assessment.

In the event of a fire, both crew and passengers must be immediately aware of what needs to be done

Fire safety inspection

Recently, the reporter was invited to participate in the fire drill training course, the scene is set on the Ohana yacht. During the exercise, the instructors explained the nuances of ship equipment, pointed out common fire hazards, proposed systematic training, and also recommended some additional tools and equipment for dealing with serious fire accidents.

Even so, says Jones, "as an experienced firefighter, I 'd like to say what we see in the classroom that we might not see when we're on board, and come up with a solution."

Prevention first

The most basic part of the fire safety plan will prevent fire as the first priority.

In addition, it is necessary to ensure that your crew receives all the training and that the yacht is equipped with equipment that can effectively extinguish fires. This will allow your crew enough time to practice and put fire prevention first.

"The engine room, kitchen and bathroom areas are the top three dangerous areas on the ship," Jones explained. "Regular maintenance and cleaning can help reduce the potential risks in these high-risk areas."

Some yachts have experienced harrowing fires, in part because yacht owners overemphasize their recreational activities, leading to negligence in maintenance and safety inspections. It is also important to schedule sufficient time for the crew throughout the cruise so that they have time to simulate the handling of emergencies and emergencies. If a shipowner does not agree with the captain's request and arranges time to do a good job in the safety maintenance of the yacht, then joining the shipowner's sailing trip is both extremely attractive and dangerous for the guests.

Make fire drills part of the travel plan

Although this is not the most pleasant way to travel, a ship owner who pays attention to fire safety will definitely ask everyone on board to participate in fire drill inspection and evacuation plan in case of emergency before starting a sailing trip.

"The first three minutes are the most important key point to stop the spread of the fire," Captain Kitcher said. If a guest is the first to discover a fire, he needs to know immediately where to find a fire extinguisher and how to use it. If you spend a few seconds thinking about how to seek help or trying to figure out how to use a fire extinguisher, it means that there will be two different endings: a shock and a disaster.

Sometimes you can try to ask yourself, if you wake up from sleep, blindfolded and cannot enter the main stairs, can you find a way to escape from the cabin? Can your children? If there is a fire, can you find a fire extinguisher immediately? Do you know your crew meeting point? Do you know what your crew needs you to do when you put out the fire?

Understanding basic fire fighting knowledge not only helps to know how to do it when the crew calls for the owner's help, but also enables the owner and the guests to maintain a relatively peaceful state of mind and avoid excessive panic when the danger is not critical.

Don't just hope that accidents don't happen.

"Not many people will experience the fire situation on the yacht," the captain Kitcher said truthfully. "However, everyone on the yacht needs to understand every step of the fire safety plan. An important reason is that with the continuous practice of first response, a lot of trouble can be reduced. When people are faced with an unfamiliar danger for the first time, it is easy to panic. Panic makes people emotional or depressed, resulting in a few minutes of sluggish thinking, resulting in the danger not being dealt with in time, which may bring serious and devastating consequences."

Make the best effort to train your crew and develop a fire safety drill plan and make it part of your travel plan. This step has been done for a long time when the fire has not occurred. Assuming that a fire accident is really unlucky, whether or not you are ready to deal with it will undoubtedly determine the ultimate fate.

May everyone have a happy voyage and arrive safely in Hong Kong!