NTSB: Engine room fire erupts on dredger Stuyvesant

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has released an investigation report into an incident where a fire in the engine room of the dredger Stuyvesant near Jacksonville, Florida, killed one crew member. 

On November 2, 2024, about 1435 local time, the dredging vessel Stuyvesant, with a crew of 22, was holding station in the St. Johns River, near Jacksonville, Florida, when a fire broke out in the engine room.

Two crewmembers were in the machinery control room when the fire started: one escaped, and the other was removed by the shipboard emergency squad and later pronounced dead at a local hospital.

After reporting no active fire and removing the crewmember, the crew verified that the engine room was sealed and released the fixed gas fire extinguishing system. No pollution was reported.

Damage to the vessel was estimated at $18 million.

Probable cause

The National Transportation Safety Board determines that the probable cause of the engine room fire on the dredging vessel Stuyvesant was lube oil spraying from an auxiliary diesel engine (generator) and igniting off a nearby running diesel engine, due to engine crewmembers not reinstalling a plug after routine maintenance in accordance with the engine manufacturer’s instructions and not thoroughly inspecting the port auxiliary engine before initially starting it.

Lessons learned

After maintenance has been conducted on engine room machinery, diligent inspection of the machinery is critical to ensure it functions as expected and all components have been reinstalled properly, said NTSB.

Starting up engines locally, rather than remotely, gives crewmembers the opportunity to immediately verify that the engine is operating satisfactorily (to manufacturer’s specifications) with no visible fuel, lube oil, or water leaks, and has no atypical noises or vibrations that require it to be stopped.