There are few places on board with a bigger fire risk than the galley.
A long day in the galley was about to come to a close as the weary chef did a final wipe of the counters. Just about to head down to bed, he was suddenly startled to see wisps of smoke streaming out from under the door of a little-used part of the galley. Opening the door, he discovered smoldering pizza boxes. They had been stored near heat lamps, but the lamps never should have been turned on. “What the hell…,” he thought, as he hastily got on the radio and notified the bridge.
A deckhand appeared almost instantly. With the fire quickly escalating, he attempted to use the HI-FOG system to little avail. Another crew member tried to clear the surrounding area of flammable materials as the deckhand grabbed a foam extinguisher and doused the boxes and area around the lamps. More crew turned up and managed to shut off the galley’s electrical systems and ventilation. Within six minutes of the chef spotting the smoke, the situation was fully under control. If the chef hadn’t noticed the smoke before he left the galley, though, the outcome could have been far worse…