Fire on Board the Liberian Passenger Ship Ecstasy, Miami, Florida ...

Factual Information 44 Marine Accident ReportCoast Guard. Upon learning of the fire on board the Ecstasy, MSO-Miami pagedthe COTP, who was off duty, and radioed Coast Guard vessels to respond. The COPT saidthat he immediately returned to the operations center, arriving about 1800. When theCOTP arrived at the operations center, the executive officer briefed him and advised himthat a safety zone had been established around the Ecstasy. 34 The COTP said that heradioed the Ecstasy’s master, who told him that the fire was contained to the aft mooringdeck by the ship’s MVZ boundaries and that the crew and waterside tugs were activelyfighting the fire.The COPT said that when Miami Beach FD and Miami-Dade FD representativesarrived, he implemented a unified command system at the operations center. Based oninformation that the Ecstasy’s fire was contained and that no one on board had sustained aserious injury, the COTP stated that the unified command members agreed that the firstobjective was to get the fire under control and then return the ship to port to disembark thepassengers. The COTP stated that transferring the passengers to another vessel wouldhave “presented unwarranted danger” to them.In the meantime, a Coast Guard 41-foot utility boat (UTB) had arrived on scene atthe Ecstasy and was assisting a Coastal tug in spraying water on the fire. A Coast Guardvessel carrying two MSO personnel arrived shortly thereafter. The MSO personnelboarded the Ecstasy about 1835 and went to the bridge where the master gave them astatus report on the fire and shipboard activities. One of the MSO personnel, a chiefwarrant officer, radioed the information to the MSO duty officer and then went to meetwith the ship’s safety officer in the aft section of the Ecstasy. The warrant officer said thatas he proceeded aft, he checked conditions on the ship. He said that the passengers were atthe muster stations and that they had either donned their lifejackets or had them nearby. Henoted that the low-level lighting was not illuminated. While the warrant officer wasexamining conditions below deck, the other MSO employee remained on the bridge,relaying information to the unified command center.At 2100, upon receiving a report from Coast Guard personnel on the Ecstasy thatthe fire was under control, the COTP and the Miami-Dade FD made a unified decision tobring the ship back to the Port of Miami. Pilots who had been sent to the Ecstasy to assessthe piloting requirements for the cruise ship directed the positioning of tugs at the bow,stern, and both sides of the vessel. The ship was then turned and maneuvered back towardthe entrance channel to Miami. By 2400, the Ecstasy had been towed back to the sea buoyarea. Upon being advised by the pilot that the ship was handling well, the COPT grantedpermission for the Ecstasy to berth, which was accomplished about 0130 July 21, 1998, atPier 8, Port of Miami. After discussions with Carnival Cruise Lines officials and MiamiDade FD, the COTP ordered that all passengers be disembarked as soon as possible.Local fire departments. Upon receiving several 911 calls from area residentsreporting a possible ship fire, the Miami Beach FD contacted the fire dispatch office and3433 CFR 165.20: A Safety Zone is a water area, shore area, or water and shore area to which, for safetyor environmental purposes, access is limited to authorized persons, vehicles, or vessels. It may be stationaryand described by fixed limits or it may be described as a zone around a vessel in motion.