Are Trucks the Bigger Fire Risk on a Ro-Pax?

On ro-pax ferries, the record says yes: freight, not cars, starts most fires. DNV GL's review of 35 ro-ro deck fires from 2005 to 2016 found 18 on ro-pax ships. Of the 14 with a known cause, 11 began in trucks, buses, the cargo they carried or reefer units, and only 3 in cars, one of them an unauthorised EV charging session.

That matters because the public debate about deck fires is almost entirely about electric cars. On a car carrier that focus is reasonable, since the cargo is cars. On a ro-pax ferry, the vehicles that most often start fires are the heavy ones, and recent casualties keep confirming it.

What the fire record shows

Freight units started 11 of the 14 ro-pax fires whose cause was identified. DNV GL's breakdown of those 14 is specific:

• Cargo carried on trucks, including transported used vehicles: 5
• Reefer units or the power connection between unit and ship: 4
• The trucks or buses themselves: 2
• Cars other than new cars: 2
• Unauthorised charging of an electric car: 1

The most severe cases cluster in freight too. DNV GL found that failures in reefer units or their power connections were the probable cause of at least four of the five major ro-pax fires in the period. Reefers are a small fraction of the vehicles carried, yet produced as many fires as all vehicles combined, so the risk per unit is considerably higher. EMSA's FIRESAFE studies reach a consistent conclusion from a wider dataset: about 90% of ro-pax fires start in the carried cargo, and electrical faults are the most common cause.

Recent casualties fit the pattern

The major ro-pax and freight ro-ro fires of the past decade mostly began in heavy vehicles. Norman Atlantic in 2014 began with a reefer truck running its own generator because there were not enough sockets. Euroferry Olympia in 2022 reportedly started in a truck in a garage, and the 11 people who died were drivers in their cabs. Blue Carrier 2 in September 2026 reportedly began in a lorry in garage No. 4. Lisco Gloria in 2010 started on a deck of trucks and trailers.

Why heavy vehicles start fires

A truck brings more ignition sources on board than a car, and some are still hot when it parks.

• Wheel ends. TT Club's claims data put 65% of truck and trailer fires at the wheel and brake assembly: dragging brakes, failed bearings and underinflated tyres. Wheel fires often appear after the vehicle stops, when cooling airflow ends, which on a ferry is just after it has parked on the deck.
• Electrical systems. Heavy vehicles carry long, often unfused cable runs between battery, starter and alternator, plus auxiliary equipment on the trailer.
• Refrigeration. Reefer units run on ship power or on their own diesel generators throughout the crossing, with sockets, cables and plugs that are handled every voyage.
• Fuel load. Large diesel tanks, hydraulic oil, tyres and the cargo itself give a fire far more to burn than a car does.
• Cargo. The trailer's contents are rarely inspected, and DNV GL counted five fires that began in the cargo on trucks.

Where EVs fit

EVs are not the main source of ro-pax fires today, but they change what happens once a fire starts. IUMI's position is that battery-electric vehicle fires are not more frequent than fires in conventional vehicles; they are harder to fight and can reignite. On a car carrier, where the cargo is thousands of cars, the EV question is central. On a ro-pax, a sensible fire plan covers both: freight is the likelier start, and an EV next to a burning trailer adds a harder fire.

What operators should do

• Check wheel ends on arrival. A quick thermal check of truck and trailer wheels on the ramp catches hot brakes and bearings before the vehicle is stowed.
• Manage reefers as a system. Match units to sockets, inspect plugs and cables each voyage, and keep reefers where the crew can reach and watch them.
• Know the drivers' positions. Euroferry Olympia showed that drivers resting in cabs share the space with the fire. Enforce the rules that keep people off vehicle decks during the crossing.
• Screen cargo declarations. Transported used vehicles and undeclared goods inside trailers belong in the booking checks, not just the stowage plan.
• Watch the heavy-vehicle lanes. Detection that can name a lane and bay matters most where the likeliest ignition sources are parked.

Sources

• 1. DNV GL — 'Fires on Ro-Ro Decks' (2016), review of 35 fires in ro-ro spaces 2005–2016: 18 on ro-pax, 8 on cargo ro-ro, 9 on vehicle carriers; table of identified causes (ro-pax: cargo on trucks 5, reefer unit 4, buses/trucks 2, cars other than new 2, unauthorised EV charging 1, unknown 4); reefer units or power connections the probable cause of at least four of five major ro-pax fires; per-unit risk considerably higher for reefers than vehicles.
• 2. EMSA — FIRESAFE I (2016) and FIRESAFE II (2018) studies on ro-ro space fire safety: about 90% of ro-pax fires initiated in the carried cargo; electrical faults the most common cause.
• 3. TT Club — 'Truck and trailer fires: what our data tells us' (9 February 2021): 65% of truck and trailer fires originated at the wheel and brake assembly (2019 claims data); dragging brakes, bearing failures and underinflated tyres as causes.
• 4. Heavy-vehicle fire guidance (fire-service and transport-industry sources): wheel fires often ignite after the vehicle stops, when cooling airflow ceases.
• 5. Hellenic Bureau for Marine Casualties Investigation — Interim report on Euroferry Olympia (19 June 2023): fire originated in a garage; 11 people lost, all truck drivers found in cabs.
• 6. Shippax, SAFETY4SEA and The Maritime Executive — coverage of the Blue Carrier 2 fire (25–27 September 2026): fire reportedly began in a lorry in garage No. 4.
• 7. The Maritime Executive — Italian prosecutors on the Norman Atlantic fire (2014): reefer trucks outnumbering power outlets, three running their own generators.
• 8. IUMI — position paper on electric vehicle fires (September 2023): battery EV fires not more frequent than fires in conventional vehicles.