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Iain Stuart Yardley
Member
Username: boz
Post Number: 241
Registered: 3-2002
| | Posted on Monday, September 2, 2002 - 12:11 pm: | 
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From Sky News:
An engine room fire which broke out on board a P & O ferry, the Norsea, in the early hours of this morning has finally been put out and is limping to it's destination of Zeebrugge, Belgium, after the engines were re-started.
The Norsea left Hull, Northern England, at 7pm Sunday for a 12-hour crossing to Zeebrugge when fire broke out 7 hours into the journey. All 600+ passengers were ordered to don life-jackets and muster at emergency points during the 4-hour ordeal.
During the emergency, which left the ferry drifting 8 miles north-east of Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, 2 RAF Sea King copters were scrambled. Lifeboats from Lowestoft and Caister were on the scene and 9 other vessels were on standby. After 4 hours the engine room was shut down and carbon dioxide was pumped in to extinguish the flames. RAF and Suffolk Fire Brigade were airlifted to the ship and confirmed the fire was out.
The Norsea is expected to reach Zeebrugge at 6pm tonight.
This is the second fire to hit the Norsea in 3 weeks. In that incident, 2 crew members were injured in a fire in the funnel uptake system. |
Erik Wood
Moderator
Username: ewood
Post Number: 1350
Registered: 4-2001
| | Posted on Tuesday, September 3, 2002 - 2:11 pm: |
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This is what Martin Cox from www.martimematters.com said about this:
North Sea Ferry Fire
NORSEA a P & O ferry carrying 611 passengers was reported adrift eight miles northeast of Great Yarmouth, east England, after a fire in the vessel's engine room. The Coastguard were contacted at 2:20AM after a fire broke out in the engine room, hundreds of passengers donned lifejackets and were told to muster at emergency stations on deck. The NORSEA's own fire system was automatically activated, before the engine room was shut down and carbon dioxide was pumped in to extinguish the flames. The blaze was extinguished by 6:30AM by the ferry's fire crew, with the help of firefighters of the Royal Air Force and Suffolk Fire Brigade who were airlifted to the ship during the emergency. Captain Jerry Walker said that there were no injuries on board due to the fire but there was concern for one passenger, a woman who suffers from angina. The captain is preparing to start the ferry's other engines and continue crossing to Zeebrugge, in Belgium under its own power.
UPDATE: NORSEA arrived at its destination, some 10 hours late. The vessel is not expected back in service until September 4th, an inquiry into the incident has begun, no injuries were reported.
Bad stuff no matter how you look at it.
All the Best,
Capt. Erik D. Wood
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James Hill
Member
Username: polisher35ataol
Post Number: 125
Registered: 2-2002
| | Posted on Tuesday, September 3, 2002 - 6:33 pm: |
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at least it wasnt as bad as the Princess Victoria. |
