Major fire on Fremantle Highway could have been prevented, expert says

The major fire on the cargo ship Fremantle Highway could have been prevented with the right extinguishing system on board, at least that's what Cor Meedendorp, director of FIFI4Marine, claims. His company specializes in fighting lithium fires on board ships. The company is now also starting to install extinguishing systems in parking garages where electric cars are parked and charged.

According to the lithium expert, major investments are needed to make cargo ships fireproof. "And the person who decides that is usually not the technician, but the person sitting behind the computer," Meedendorp argues. "If you're a shipping company and you have 50 or 100 ships and you have to invest 2 to 3 million euros per ship to install another extinguishing system, it's often cheaper to keep the insurance premium a little higher. And to 'just' put up with one of your ships burning down once every 10 years," he continues.

FIFI4Marine, based in Zwaag, Noord-Holland, began developing an automatic, unmanned extinguishing system seven years ago. "The system reacts immediately after gas and temperature are detected. The fire is extinguished with a biological foam before it can develop. There is no contamination or corrosion, it is PFAS-free and no toxic fumes are released. You intervene before the fire reaches uncontrollable proportions," the founder explains.

The material, which resembles shaving foam, is transported through pipes to where it is needed. According to Meedendorp, the Netherlands is "somewhat averse" to the use of foam because, until now, everything has been very chemical and environmentally harmful.

FIFI4Marine has now equipped about 20 ocean-going vessels and luxury yachts with its firefighting systems. Nine of them are so-called Roro ships, owned by the Italian shipping company Grimaldi. "Numbers 10 and 11 are now in production," he says.

The company will now install the systems in parking garages. "We are working on a large project in Rotterdam and are in talks about a parking garage in The Hague." The Dutch fire department recently expressed concern about fires in electric cars, which are difficult to extinguish. This is especially a problem in parking garages.

According to Meedendorp, this can be solved. "With 24/7 monitoring, we can intervene immediately and unmanned. With sensors connected to our control systems, we know exactly what is happening in which parking garage. In the event of a fire, we also activate the two adjacent spots. We then use foam very briefly to keep the flames from spreading from the first car." With the help of the fire department, the vehicle can then be brought out on a special roller system or via the automated parking system.

However, FIFI4Marine emphasizes that cooperation with the Fire Brigade is necessary.