On August 26, 2019, about 1830 local time, the fishing vessel Ariel was transiting Sheep Bay, Prince William Sound, Alaska, when a fire broke out in the vessel's engine room. The four crewmembers aboard the Ariel attempted to fight the fire, but they were unsuccessful and abandoned ship into the vessel's skiff. The Ariel continued to burn and subsequently sank. The crew was rescued by Good Samaritan vessels and returned to port uninjured.About 500 gallons of diesel fuel was aboard the vessel when it sank. The Ariel, valued at an estimated $600,000, was a total loss.
The National Transportation Safety Board determined that the probable cause of the fire aboard the fishing vessel Ariel was the ignition of fuel leaking from the generator fuel supply line in the engine room. Contributing to the severity of the fire and the eventual loss of the vessel were the fixed-open inlets for the engine room ventilation, which allowed fire-extinguishing agent to escape and air to enter the space.
Closing Ventilation During Fixed Fire-Extinguishing System Activation
Fixed fire-extinguishing systems in engineering and other hazardous spaces require a minimum concentration of extinguishing agent to either halt the chemical reaction producing the fire, displace the oxygen feeding the fire, or effect a combination of both. To ensure the effectiveness of the system and prevent the reintroduction of oxygen to the space, ventilation inlets should be designed or modified to be closed remotely or covered
