The fire aboard a huge cargo ship that killed two Newark firefighters last week has finally been extinguished, but there are still questions that remain, the U.S. Coast Guard said.
Flames were officially put out almost six days after the inferno aboard an Italian-flagged vessel at a city port carrying thousands of vehicles and other goods took the lives of Augusto “Augie” Acabou and Wayne “Bear” Brooks Jr., the Coast Guard said during the Tuesday morning press conference.
A cause of the fire remains under investigation, as does the series of events that led to both firefighters' deaths. The process to salvage the ship could take between one and two months.
Electric vehicles aboard the ship were offloaded in Baltimore. Other previously owned vehicles bound for western Africa were loaded onboard in Newark. The vessel was supposed to head to Providence, Rhode Island, for more previously owned vehicles before heading for Africa.
As many as 1,200 vehicles on nine decks were aboard, all of which had the gas tanks drained and batteries disconnected. There were no reports of any lithium ion batteries on board at the time of the fire, according to the Coast Guard and Port Authority officials, and none were documented on the manifest of the ship.
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"What we had burning were components and parts of cars," said Bethann Rooney, the director for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.
As the investigation into the raging fire continues, the Newark Fire union is raising pointed questions about why their firefighters were never trained to fight fires at the port — and whether that lack of training put firefighters’ lives at risk.
"Our apparatus is unsafe: Our large capacity fire boat wouldn’t start, the rigs are older than the firefighters driving them," said Michael Giunta, the president of the Newark Firefighters Union.
Union officials say Newark’s firefighting force has dropped below 400 — down from a force of 600 at the start of 2000. Veteran Newark firefighters say despite having the responsibility of putting out cargo ship fires, their only training included reading paper memos left at the firehouses.
"There was no full scale, fire department training...that ever occurred on the city of Newark in the history that I’ve been there" said Captain Anthony Tarantino, president of Newark fire officers union.
Later Tuesday afternoon, Newark Mayor Ras Baraka responded to the firefighters’ claims, calling their statements "unconscionable, divisive, and only add insult to the injury that the families and our City is already experiencing. Our firefighters are among the most valued members of our community – as Mayor, I’m committed to making sure they have the resources they need to do their job safely.”
Baraka and Newark’s public safety director also noted that the city continues to invest in the fire department, with 109 new hires planned for 2023.
Captain Zeita Merchant said that the Coast Guard will be "committed to implementing lessons learned so we do not repeat the tragedies we experienced here in Newark."
Normal operations resumed Monday at the East Coast's biggest port.
Officials said fire crews arriving at about 9:30 p.m. Wednesday reported a blaze in the rear of the ship on the 10th to 12th levels. About an hour later, a mayday call was issued after a firefighter became trapped inside, and a second mayday call was issued for another firefighter.
Acabou, a firefighter for more than nine years, was rescued from the ship before midnight and was later taken to a hospital, where he died Thursday morning. Brooks, a firefighter for more than 16 years, died early Thursday morning after he was recovered. Gov. Phil Murphy ordered flags to fly at half-staff in the honor of the two, who were remembered by friends and family at a memorial service Friday.
Later this week, Acabou and Brooks will be laid to rest. The funeral for Acabou will take place on Thursday at 10 a.m. at the Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart in Newark. The next day, a funeral will be held for Brooks at the same cathedral, also at 10 a.m.
Officials said five other firefighters were injured, one suffering “steam burns from water accumulated on the cargo ship's floor” and the other four – two from Newark and two from neighboring Elizabeth – experiencing such things as heat exhaustion, smoke inhalation and respiratory distress. Public safety officials said all three Newark fire captains were released from the hospital and the burn victim was in stable condition and completing his recovery at home.
Authorities say an investigation to determine the cause of the fire can’t begin until the fire is out. Officials said “a salvage plan will be developed and implemented once the fire is extinguished and the vessel had been deemed safe to move."
Authorities had said debris inside the ship was clogging outflow spouts so the large amount of water being poured onto it could not drain out, causing the ship to tilt, but they said Saturday that efforts to remove water — which included poking holes in the hull — had improved the situation. The vessel is stable “with a slight list to the starboard side" and a one- to two-degree list would continue “as a way to accelerate the dewatering process,” they said.
