(www.MaritimeCyprus.com) When Maersk accepted an apparently routine booking to carry containers loaded with calcium hypochlorite from Jebel Ali to Jeddah in 2015, it must have thought it knew what the job entailed. The chemical — widely used to disinfect swimming pools, drinking water and effluent discharges into rivers — is classified as a class 5.1 dangerous good in the pages of the UN Manual of Tests and Criteria. It was correctly labelled. And after all, shifting nasty stuff with a propensity to oxidise from A to B is an everyday task for a major liner outfit and normally undertaken without mishap. The case arose from an explosion and fire aboard the MAERSK SEOUL in July 2015. More than a decade later, the shipper was held liable for losses exceeding USD 13 million. The judgment is particularly noteworthy because the cargo had not simply been misdeclared or shipped without the carrier knowing that it was dangerous. The carrier knew that it was carrying calcium hypochlorite, a Class 5.1 dangerous good. The problem was the manner in which the cargo had been packed and stuffed into the containers. What happened? Sree Rayalaseema Hi-Strength Hypo Limited (Sree), an Indian chemical manufacturer, shipped a number of containers of calcium hypochlorite with Maersk. Three of those containers were loaded aboard the MAERSK SEOUL at Jebel Ali. On 19 July 2015, shortly after the vessel departed Jebel Ali, an explosion and fire occurred in the forward part of the vessel. Calcium hypochlorite is a self-heating substance. In ordinary circumstances, heat generated by its decomposition can dissipate into the surrounding environment. If that heat cannot escape sufficiently, however, increasing temperatures can accelerate the decomposition process until it becomes self-sustaining, resulting in violent decomposition and the ignition of surrounding combustible material. The evidence pointed strongly towards Sree's cargo. Members of the crew reported a chlorine smell and observed debr