On February 18, 2025, the RoRo vessel Grande Brasile, caught fire while en route from Belgium to France. At the time of the incident, the ship was approximately 15 nautical miles off the coast of Ramsgate, England. The fire caused significant damage to the ship’s cargo and required an international emergency response.

Salvage teams from France, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom assisted in managing the emergency and stabilizing the vessel.

Following Koole’s previous experience with the Fremantle Highway cleanup, Koole was contracted to manage the removal and processing of the cargo aboard. The ship was carrying approximately 917 vehicles. Of these, 472 vehicles were severely burned and declared total loss, while the remaining units sustained minimal damage.

Vehicles with minor damage were carefully cleaned using a combination of a mobile car wash system and high-pressure washers, before being safely offloaded. The undamaged cars on the lower decks were unaffected by smoke, fire or firefighting water. These vehicles were driven off the vessel and securely delivered at the terminal.

Burned-out vehicle wrecks were extracted using bobcats, excavators, and mechanical grabs, then loaded onto a barge for recycling.

After all vehicles had been removed, Koole personnel cleaned the ship’s cargo decks. Upon completion of the operation, the Grande Brasile was declared ready for its voyage to Turkey, where it was scheduled to be dismantled and decommissioned.