Greece ferry on FIRE: Tourist ship bursts into FLAMES - 1,000 holidaymakers evacuated
A FIRE has broken out on a passenger vessel as it was travelling to Chania on the Greek island of Crete forcing the ferry to sail back to the port of Piraeus near Athens with 1,016 people onboard.
Greece ferry fire: Passengers evacuate as fire engulfs ship
The boat was on route to Chania, off the island of Hydra, the Greek coast guard said on Wednesday.
There were no immediate reports of injuries and the situation is not worrying, a coast guard official told Reuters.
A car parking compartment had caught fire around midnight local time (10pm BST) as the Eleftherios Venizelos passenger ferry was sailing off Hydra with 875 passengers and 141 crew onboard.
Pictures have emerged of the ferry - owned by the ANEK line - being doused by water jets in a bid to calm the blaze ahead of its arrival at the port.
Theo Gkousarov wrote about the fire on Twitter, saying: “A friend of mine travelling from Athens Pireaus to Chania Crete with ANEK lines sent me this photo.
“The Ship is on fire and it is being evacuated.
“They are now returning back to port with several ships heading for emergency.”
A friend of mine travelling from Athens Pireaus to Chania Crete with ANEK lines sent me this photo. The Ship is on fire and it is being evacuated. They are now returning back to port with several ships heading for emergency. pic.twitter.com/RrmGN8IFSJ
— Theo Gkousarov (@Satdecrypter) August 29, 2018
He shared an image of people in orange life jackets as they were evacuated from the boat.
A witness reported seeing passengers in lifejackets being escorted down a sideway stair, while plumes of smoke were still billowing out from the side of the ship.
Firefighters were deployed at the pier to tackle the blaze.
Getting passengers off the boat was an immense operation, according to coast guard spokesman Nikos Lagdianos.
He said: “It was a huge operation and everything went to plan.”
One passenger identified only by her first name, Natassa, told Skai TV: “It was difficult to breathe from the smoke”
Another reported hearing a “big noise” before passengers were advised to wear lifejackets and head to assembly areas.
Disembarkation of all passengers was completed around 0700 am (0500 BST).
The cause of the fire was not immediately clear, but authorities were investigating the possibility it may have started from a vehicle. There were more than 200 vehicles, including trucks, on the vessel.