AMAS

Amsterdam Mutual Aid System, AMAS in short, is a cooperation project of oil companies and storage terminals with regards to fire fighting in large calamities:

• Aircraft Fuel Supply Schiphol 
• Zenith Energy Amsterdam Terminal B.V.
• Vopak Terminal Amsterdam

• Oiltanking Amsterdam B.V.

• EuroTank Amsterdam B.V.

• Nustar Amsterdam B.V. 

AMAS sets out to have sufficient material at their disposal to combat large fire scenarios with affiliated members. These scenarios can occur in the area of participating oil companies and storage terminals. Large fire scenarios are extinguishing a fire in a 21,000-m2 tank pit and extinguishing a so-called ‘full surface’ fire in a tank with a 3800 m2 cover.

Changing rules and regulations from Europe and stricter demands from the Dutch authorities call for these measures. Furthermore, there is a need for flexibly employable fire fighting material for large fires, such as tank fires and tank pit fires. A system that can be replaced quickly in ever changing winds is a must when a fire breaks out. Prompted by the social responsibility with regards to safety these companies want to take up in order to realise such a system, AMAS started this as a project some years ago.

In the meantime, AMAS has purchased flexibly employable fire fighting material. AMAS now owns 2 Williams water/foam guns, 6 kilometres of 6” hose and (for this system necessary) mobile, diesel-driven fire fighting pumps with a unique proportional foam-mixing installation (the so-called fire-dos), so that they can utilize a total of 45,000 litres of water and foam per minute.

In order to deploy this material effectively and to have enough manpower for the system, a public-private partnership was founded with the fire departments in the Amsterdam-Amstelland area, named AYMA (Amsterdam Ymond Mutual Aid). AYMA’s purpose is to have material and manpower available to enhance the safety in the area and to meet the legal and regulatory requirements.

* Vopak Terminal Amsterdam and Vopak Terminal Westpoort will take part as soon as Vopak Terminal Westpoort is employed.