Fire frequency on containerships increased for a third consecutive year in 2025, despite overall safety improvements among member fleets of the Container Ship Safety Forum (CSSF), according to data presented at the forum's recent Athens members meeting.
Swapnodeep Mondal, second chairman of the CSSF and group director of operations at Anglo-Eastern, warned the industry cannot become complacent. He stated that "the numbers do matter, but details matter more." While cargo fires attract the most attention, the CSSF data show that engine room and machinery-space fires still account for the largest share of reported incidents among CSSF members, well ahead of cargo fires. Mondal emphasized that the industry is not facing a new problem but is "still wrestling with the oldest ones."
Fire types and root causes
The CSSF data reveal a persistent challenge with basic machinery and equipment failures. Mondal stressed the need to focus on fundamentals: equipment integrity, preventive maintenance, leak management, fire detection systems, and crew preparedness. At the same time, cargo-related risks must not be neglected, especially as global supply chains become more complex.
| Fire category | Share of reported incidents | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| Engine room / machinery-space fires | Largest share | Stable but dominant |
| Cargo fires (including batteries) | Smaller share | Growing, especially from hidden batteries |
Lithium-ion batteries: a hidden danger
Mondal identified lithium-ion batteries as one of the most serious emerging risks in containership transport. He distinguished between battery risks on vehicle carriers (electric cars) and container ships. For container shipping, the challenge is different: batteries can be hidden in boxes, inside electronics, industrial kits, or energy storage units. As Mondal warned, "the danger may be invisible until it is too late."
He noted that as electrification accelerates, container operators are arguably more exposed than car carriers because "it often does not know the batteries are aboard." A newer dimension is vessels using batteries for propulsion, but those installed systems are designed, certified, and monitored, whereas undeclared boxes in the hold are not. Mondal called the invisible problem the harder one.
Navigational incidents on the rise
The CSSF data also show a continued increase in navigational incident frequency since 2022, both on a vessel-day basis and a port-call basis. Mondal does not attribute this to a single cause. He pointed to normalization: "traffic, port congestion and schedule pressure are all coming back to full intensity after a quieter spell." Notably, a significant share of incidents are low-speed contact events in port and confined water — with berths, buoys, moored objects — rather than dramatic open-sea collisions. That reframes the problem toward the port interface, including berthing, pilotage, tug use, and crew fatigue at the end of a passage.
The role of AI and next steps
Mondal sees artificial intelligence as having significant potential to support safety through predictive maintenance, anomaly detection, and cargo screening. However, he cautioned that AI should be viewed as a decision-support tool "rather than a replacement for competent crews, effective procedures and a strong safety culture." For containerships, AI can make screening scalable at the point where a fire can still be prevented — before the box is loaded. He called that "the single highest-return intervention for container ships." Yet there is no silver bullet; gains come from collaboration among cargo interests, carriers, regulators, class societies, and technology providers.
Implications for operators and shippers
For freight forwarders, logistics managers, and ocean carriers, the CSSF findings underscore the importance of robust cargo screening and accurate declarations. Shippers must ensure that batteries and other energy-dense items are properly declared and stowed. Carriers should invest in advanced detection systems and crew training. Port authorities and terminal operators need to be aware of the increased risk of low-speed contact incidents during berthing and pilotage. The rising frequency of both fire and navigational incidents means that safety cannot be taken for granted even as other metrics improve.
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