SOLAS Chapter II-2 sets mandatory global standards for ship fire safety, focusing on prevention, detection, and extinction to protect life, cargo, and the environment, using principles like ship subdivision into fire zones, restricting combustibles, installing detection systems, and providing escape routes, all detailed across parts covering General, Prevention, Suppression, Escape, Operations, and Alternative Designs, with specific requirements for materials (A, B, C classes) and system readiness.

Core Principles & Objectives

• Prevent fire & explosion: Minimize ignition sources, control fuel (combustibles).

• Reduce risk to life: Ensure rapid escape and safe evacuation.

• Contain & control: Divide ship into vertical zones using fire-resistant bulkheads (A-60, A-30, etc.).

• Provide escape: Maintain clear, protected escape routes. 

Key Areas Covered

• Construction: Use of fire-resistant materials (non-combustible, steel), structural integrity of divisions (A-Class, B-Class).

• Restriction of Combustibles: Limiting flammable materials in accommodation, control areas.

• Fire Growth/Smoke Potential: Regulations on material properties (Regulation 5 & 6).

• Fixed fire detection systems required in specific spaces (e.g., vehicle decks, machinery spaces).

• Automatic alarms for rapid fire detection.

• Water Supply: Adequate water pressure and volume for fire hoses.

• Fixed Systems: Water mist, sprinklers, etc., for machinery spaces, cargo holds, vehicle decks.

• Portable Extinguishers: Readily available throughout the ship.

• Protected means of escape, emergency lighting, and signs.

• Training, drills, maintenance, and readiness of fire safety equipment (e.g., breathing apparatus).

• Allows for novel designs if they meet the same functional fire safety objectives.