The purpose of this Chapter is to require the fullest practicable degree of fire protection, fire detection and fire extinction in ships. The following basic principles underlie the Regulations in this Chapter and are embodied in the Regulations as appropriate, having regard to the type of ship and the potential fire hazard involved:
| (a) | Division of ship into main vertical zones by thermal and structural boundaries; |
| (b) | separation of accommodation spaces from the remainder of the ship by thermal and structural boundaries; |
| (c) | restricted use of combustible materials; |
| (d) | detection of any fire in the zone of origin; |
| (e) | containment and extinction of any fire in the space of origin; |
| (f) | protection of means of escape or access for fire fighting; |
| (g) | ready availability of fire-extinguishing appliances; |
| (h) | minimization of possibility of ignition of inflammable cargo vapour. |
