Safety Recommendation Date: December 1,2009 In reply refer to: M-09-17 M-07-1 (Reiteration)

摘要

About 0012 Pacific daylight time on April 8, 2008, a fire broke out in the engineroom of the 221-foot-long U.S. small passenger vessel Queen of the West. The vintage-style, paddlewheel vessel was traveling east on the Columbia River near Rufus, Oregon, with 124 overnight passengers and 53 crewmembers on board, as part of a 7-day cruise. Though not required by U.S. Coast Guard regulations, the owner of the Queen of the West, Majestic America Line, had equipped the vessel with an automatic fire detection system and a fixed fire suppression system. The systems functioned properly, alerting the bridge team to the fire and helping to extinguish the flames. Crewmembers were able to contain the fire to the engineroom, and the vessel did not need to be evacuated. The Queen of the West sustained about $3.9 million in damage. One crewmember was treated for mild hypothermia.