Florida Maritime Accident Lawyer
Boat, Ship and Marina Fires
Abandoning a boat is illegal in Florida
Category: Boat, Ship and Marina Fires
I'm currently involved in a case where a boat caught on fire while it was being fueled by its owner. It burned an adjacent boat, whose owner I represent, and then broke away and floated down the creek where it had been docked. I came to a stop against another dock and sank.
The owner (and the owners' attorney) have been promising to remove the wreck for 16 months now, but so far it hasn't been done. If he doesn't remove it, the FWC may need to get involved.
According to Florida Statutes, it is illegal to store, leave, or abandon any derelict vessel in the state. A violation is a first degree misdemeanor. In addition, if the owner of a derelict vessel fails to abide by an order of the FWC to remove the vessel, a civl penalty can be assessed of up to $50,000 per day. A derelict vessel is one which is "wrecked, junked, or substantially dismantled condition."
Does it really happen? As John Saxer, a 55-year-old bicycle repairman and bartender who works in Tarpon Springs but lives in Holiday, Florida, found out, it does. He sold his ferrocement boat Ark of Eden to a friend, but the friend never registered her ownership with the State of Florida. When it sunk, she walked away, leaving Saxer as the registered owner.
He failed to appear when he was summoned by the FWC and was arrested. He is now out on bail of $500 but the State of Florida is seeking $37,500 in removal costs from him. You can read the full story in the St. Petersburg Times.
Fuel gages may be causing boat fires and explosions
Category: Boat, Ship and Marina Fires
Most gasoline powered boat explosions are caused by fuel leaks. A common source of the problem is the tank gaging system used in many small boats. The guages used to be housed in tubes made from aluminum which extended into the fuel tank. However, the manufacturer has changed the tubes from aluminum to stainless steel. While no announcement heralded the change, speculation in the boating community is that the aluminum tubes weren't strong enough to withstand the pounding, surging, and motion of fuel inside the tank, without suffering from fatigue.
In short, if you have a fuel leak, remove the gage and send it to a metalurgist for testing. Frank Grate, a metallurgist in Miami, is familiar with testing these types of gages.
Gritter Griffin and Jueckstock involved in boat explosion
Category: Boat, Ship and Marina Fires
Two fishermen fishing in a Florida redfish tournament are lucky not to have died. Gritter Griffin of Alabama and Paul Jueckstock of Port Orange were on their way to the weigh-in at Charlotte County's when there was an explosion and fire aboard their boat .
"We heard an explosion," said Griffen. "There was fire the length of the boat." Griffin was catapulted from the boat, but neither he nor Jueckstock knew what was going on at the point. It didn't take long before they realized they were in trouble. There was a second explosion which sent Jueckstock airborne.
"I think I dived into the water," Jueckstock said. "I thought I might have broke my neck -- the water was only two feet deep."
Most gasoline powered boat explosions are caused by fuel leaks. A common source of the problem is the tank gaging system used in many small boats. The guages used to be housed in tubes made from aluminum which extended into the fuel tank. However, the manufacturer has changed the tubes from aluminum to stainless steel. While no announcement heralded the change, speculation in the boating community is that the aluminum tubes weren't strong enough to withstand the pounding, surging, and motion of fuel inside the tank, without suffering from fatigue.
In short, if you have a fuel leak, remove the gage and send it to a metalurgist for testing. Frank Grate, a metallurgist in Miami, is familiar with testing these types of gages.
Zacarias Moussaoui and Exhibit 941
Category: Boat, Ship and Marina Fires
One of the most interesting historical documents to come out of the Zacarias Moussaoui trial is Exhibit 941. That is the Exhibit number assigned to the "Substitution for the Testimony of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed," the mastermind of the 9/11 hijackings.
Sure some things that KSM say about ZM exonerate him from 9/11. But how appealing was the defense "I didn't conspire to kill 3000 in the WTC attach, it was another 3000 I was planning on killing?" It doesn't really grab me.
Everyone connected with al-Qaeda says that ZM was training as a pilot to carry out a second wave of attacks. Is that a defense?
Will ZM be made a martyr? I guess. But you can't really argue that he was just a braggart because he doesn't come off as James Bond.
What happened to Halon on yachts?
Category: Boat, Ship and Marina Fires
If you think those far off international treaties don't affect you, you are wrong.
Halon fire fighting systems were a welcome addition to the recreational boating industry when they were first introduced. They extinguished engine room fires while saving the lives of the passengers on board. That all changed beginning in 1994.
The Montreal Protocol on ozone depleting substances was passed in 1987. The protocol was administered by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), which maintained a list of ozone-depleting substances which included Halon. In the United States, the Clean Air Act (CAA) Amendments of 1990 implemented the provisions of the Montreal Protocol into U.S. law. Under the Act the production of Halon ceased on January 1, 1994.
In Europe, EC Regulation 2037/2000 went into effect on October 1, 2000. It provided that new halon could not be used to refill existing systems; that recovered, recycled or reclaimed halon could only be used in existing systems until December 31, 2002; and that after that date no refilling could take place. Mandatory decommissioning of halon fire extinguishing systems had to be completed before December 31, 2003. Consequently yachts registered in European nations have had to scrap their systems altoghether or have them systems replaced.
U.S. yachts continue to use recycled Halon. However, it has become progressively more expensive and to date no one has discovered a simple and inexpensive alternative which can be "dropped-in" to existing Halon systems. Many boats owners are simply discontinuing use of the systems, which are not required, and taking the risk that in the event of a fire they can extinguish it will portable CO2, dry chemical or more recently AFFF (aqueous foam) extinguishers.
Most US shipowners moved from halon to CO2 for their engine room protection for new ships. Existing ships with halon systems installed continue to use recycled/reclaimed halon to recharge the systems which are discharged, or which need to be topped off.
Inert gas systems, like nitrogen or nitrogen/argon systems require large cylinders under high pressure to supply the gas.
CO2 and HFC-125 systems were supposed to replace Halon but they may be on the way out as well. The Kyoto Protocol was adopted without the participation of the United States on December 10, 1997. It committed the countries which signed to reductions in the release of Global Warming Gases which included CO2 and hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs).
Halon Systems
Category: Boat, Ship and Marina Fires
Most US shipowners moved from halon to CO2 for their engine room protection for new ships. Existing ships with halon systems installed continue to use recycled/reclaimed halon to recharge the systems which are discharged, or which need to be topped off.
Inert gas systems, like nitrogen or nitrogen/argon systems require large cylinders under high pressure to supply the gas.
USCG: Bow Mariner Final Report
Category: Boat, Ship and Marina Fires
Twenty-one men died 200 miles off the coast of New Jersey in February 2004 when the M/V Bow Mariner exploded shortly after discharging a cargo of volatile petroleum product called MTBE--Methyl Tert Butyl Ether. The ship sank in about an hour an a half. Only six men, including the Captain and Chief Engineer, who abandoned ship 10 minutes after the explosion, survived.
Now the Coast Guard has issued its final report which puts blame on the decision of the Captain to open 22 cargo tanks for gas freeing. The Coast Guard says that the gas freeing operation caused flammable gases to accumulate on deck, leading to an explosion. It was quickly followed by two more explosions which racked the ship's structure.
The report has some good suggestions, like supplying seamen with immersion suits to prevent against hypothermia. However, its conclusions about the cause and origin of the fire are implausible. Generally, a ship moving through the ocean at 15 knots will not experience any accumulation of flammable vapors on deck because the air flow simply takes the vapors over the side. An explosion inside a tank is more likely.