Engine Room Fire Disables Italian Ferry off Bari
An Italian ferry carrying 253 passengers and crew en route to the Albanian port of Durres had to return to the port of Bari Tuesday night, after a fire erupted in its engine room shortly after leaving the Italian port, the Italian daily ANSA reports.
The crew aboard the passenger RoRo ferry AF Francesca was ready to deploy lifeboats immediately after the fire alarms went off, but the plan was abandoned after the fire was quickly contained. The fire was reportedly completely extinguished at around 2:30 am local time.
The ferry was disabled by the fire, and was towed back to Bari at around 6 am local time today. There have been no injuries to 203 passengers and 50 crew reported so far.
“When they raised the alarm we gathered in groups of 20-25 people near the lifeboats. We were wearing lifejackets and were given water. When the alarm sounded off again, they made us sit and gave us food. On board we received plenty of support but now we are tired. We were stuck on the ship for hours and some women felt ill,” one of the passengers said.
The 150 meter long ferry AF Francesca is operated by Adria Ferries. It was built in 1987 and has the capacity to carry 1,320 passengers and 500 vehicles.
World Maritime News Staff; Image: Adria Ferries
