Late Sunday night, the Jacksonville Fire Rescue Department released a video showing an explosion aboard the 600-foot Norwegian cargo ship called Höegh Xiamen.
The video, released on social media, starts as a heavy plume of white smoke is seen near one end of the burning ship. Seconds later, an even heavier plume of smoke shoots out and send debris flying.
What happened?
On Saturday, JFRD said, crews were cooling the ship with more than 25,000 gallons of water per minute on all sides. Sunday morning, JFRD said the fire is considered under control but is still burning.
Several firefighters and emergency responders can be seen in the video looking on. Hundreds of firefighters have been working to extinguish a fire that started on the ship Thursday.
Aftermath of the accident
Five days after nine Jacksonville firefighters were injured battling a huge blaze inside a car-carrier ship docked at Blount Island Marine Terminal, all but two are out of the hospital.
Eight members of Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department were among dozens trying to find the fire inside the Norwegian ship loaded with used vehicles on Thursday afternoon when there was an explosion. The firefighters escaped the ship with their lives, but with burns to their heads and hands.
No injuries to the crew
There are no injuries to any of the 21 crew members, who have all been evacuated from the vessel. There are no reports of any pollution. A safety zone has been established around the vessel as a precautionary measure.
Also read https://mfame.guru/watch-explosion-onboard-cargo-ship-firefighters-injured-battling-blaze/
Hotspots still in the ship
According to the U.S. Coast Guard, there are still hotspots inside the ship, but the flames aboard the car carrier are under control, contained to the upper levels of the 15-deck ship.
“They’ve actually been able to access the lower levels now,” said Coast Guard Capt. Mark Vlaun.
Investigation in full swing
That allows fire crews to begin the process of reaching hotspots inside. So far, according to the Coast Guard, chemicals and fuel have not leaked from the ship into the water,
The Coast Guard, National Transportation Safety Board and state of Florida are investigating the cause of the fire.
JFRD chief, Powers wants his team to learn from this moment, too. He as created a five-person committee of JFRD chiefs to review what happened and make recommendations on lessons learned.
Powers said the fireman are recovering and many of them are already talking about coming back to work. One will actually return to the job for a shift Saturday.
Details of the vessel
Hoegh Xiamen (IMO: 9431848) is a 12,250 dwt vehicle carrier built in 2010 and registered in Norway. The vessel is on T/C (Time Charter) to Grimaldi Deepsea S.p.A. This means Höegh Xiamen is commercially operated by Grimaldi Deepsea S.p.A.
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Source: News4Jax
