Fire at Namport syncrolift

A fire occurred at the port of Walvis Bay on Sunday.

According to a press statement by Namibian Ports Authority marketing and stakeholder engagement manager Cliff Shikuambi, the duty station received an emergency call at about 14h43, reporting a fire on the vessel Mar del Cabo at the Syncrolift.

Twelve officers, aided by the Walvis Bay municipality, responded to the scene where they found the vessel engulfed by flames.

“The fire team used foam to control the liquid fire while a second team conducted boundary cooling from the outside to prevent the fire from spreading and to cool the burning liquid. Apart from vessel damage, which has been confined to the engine room and inside of the vessel, no other damage or injuries have been reported. The fire was eventually brought under control just after 18h00,” he says.

Shikuambi says preliminary investigations reveal that the fire was started during hot works on the ballas tank which was not cleaned from all the flammable liquids.

It heated up during the cutting exercises, causing radiation and conduction in the engine room.

Further details will be communicated.