Photos: Cargo Ship Handling Scrap Metal Catches Fire in Denmark

The Copenhagen, Denmark fire service is reporting after 30 hours it was able to extinguish a smokey fire aboard a smaller coastal cargo ship without serious incident. They called the operation a success as they were able to prevent the vessel from capsizing and the fire from spreading to an adjacent warehouse.

The fire was initially reported during the day on October 13 and continued to burn overnight and into the weekend. There were concerns due to the large volume of smoke emanating from the fire but it was mostly drifting over uninhabited areas while the fire department also sought to disperse the smoke.

The 2,750 dwt vessel Ann Rousing arrived in Copenhagen overnight on October 13 coming from Odense, Denmark. The vessel, which was built in 1991 and registered in Denmark, was handling scrap metal. It is unclear from the reports if the fire started on the ship or from the scrap metal.

 

The fire took 30 hours to control and extinguish (Hovedstadens Beredskab)

 

Pictures issued by the fire department showed flames and large amounts of smoke coming from the 278-foot vessel’s open cargo hold. The fire department reported that the cargo was “burning violently.” They were using water cannons both from the dock and the harbor in an effort to extinguish the fire. They were also assisted by a neighboring fire company and emergency service.

After fighting the fire throughout the night, on October 14 they reported it had been reduced to a few small pockets but later in the day that it was finally considered out. However, the ship remained very hot with ongoing efforts to cool the structure and prevent the fire from re-igniting.

They also began efforts to dewater the ship as it was increasingly listing raising concerns that it would capsize. They also strung a containment barrier as a precautionary measure.

 

Efforts continued to cool the ship and the cargo after the fire was extinguished (Hovedstadens Beredskab)