Tema Sistemi spa, a company from Taranto specialized in the design and production of fire prevention systems, has been chosen to extinguish the last outbreaks of the Norman Atlantic. The rapid reduction of the internal temperatures of the ship no longer made the shutdown necessary.
- Speed of shutdown
- Inaccessibility of the doors
- Use of a limited extinguishing quantity to avoid further damage to the ship.
Fire extinguishing technology
The fire extinguishing technology with added atomized water was considered for dealing with this type of fire
Given the particular context, the fire extinguishing technology with added atomized water was considered the most suitable for dealing with this type of fire. The extinguishing performance involved the use of a special generator (fog cannon) produced by Ecology Srl, mounted on a CGT fire-fighting vehicle. The fog cannon would have been activated after having made from one to three holes of about two meters in diameter each, in the left wall of the Norman Atlantic, at the level of the bridge n. 3.
The main extinguishing characteristics produced by this system are:
- Fast and important heat removal
- Oxygen rarefaction due to the rapid change of state of the water
- Creation of a cold barrier against heat radiation towards the outside of the fire.
Extinguishing of the flames
These actions allow for an almost immediate extinction of the fire with quantities of water far less than traditional water systems. These characteristics are enhanced by the addition of the additive FIREFIVE® encapsulator.
Developed and produced by a company of the Tema group, FIREFIVE® has the ability to:
- Increase the wettability level of the water, favoring the sudden reduction of temperatures and the extinguishing of the flames
- Reducing the fumes and unburnt, increasing visibility of the environment and facilitating the possible intervention of the Fire Brigade.
Rising internal temperatures
The planned intervention was aimed at extinguishing the fire at the level of bridge no. 3. There was no possibility to open the main doors, therefore the only plausible option was to make one or more openings on the same level. Before opening the holes for the delivery of the mist of water with the addition of FIREFIVE®, it was absolutely necessary to plug the openings in the various points of the ship with airtight closures, so as not to allow the entry of air (oxygen) inside the same.
Having drilled the ventilation holes, the depression generated could have generated deflagrations. The vehicle equipped with fog cannon was positioned in front of the hole to shoot the water spray added within the volume of the ship, with an alternate supply for 5/10 minutes - pause to wait for the internal temperatures to rise - new supply.
Generating dramatic consequences
Tema Sistemi spa is pleased to have given its availability for the definitive shutdown of the outbreaks
The duration of this procedure did not exceed 24/48 hours. Thus, Eng. Orazio Tommasi, technical director of Tema Sistemi SpA describes how the extinguishing intervention was designed. “A fundamental element was therefore to monitor the internal temperatures with about 6 thermocouples inserted in the critical points of the ship, precisely on the ventilation hatches of the upper deck.”
“The temperatures recorded continuously established precisely the delivery times and the relative pauses in order to minimize the quantity of water and the quantity of FIREFIVE® delivered” continues Eng. Tommasi, who coordinated the planning of the works with the help of the staff of Tema Sistemi spa and Tema Safety & Training Srl.
Tema Sistemi spa is pleased to have given its availability for the definitive shutdown of the outbreaks present in the Norman Atlantic which, they have generated dramatic consequences. Tema Sistemi spa is pleased to have given its availability for the definitive extinction of the outbreaks present in the Norman Atlantic which, as is well known, have generated dramatic consequences.
