Re: The Italian cruise ship disaster.
Look what I've found on 'internet' news this evening:
Distress: Costa Cruise Ship Adrift After Fire
Sky NewsSky News – 24 minutes ago
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Distress: Costa Cruise Ship Adrift After Fire
Another ship in the same fleet as wrecked Costa Concordia has sent out a distress signal after a fire left it adrift off the Seychelles, the Italian coastguard has said.
The Costa Allegra , carrying more than 1,000 people, is drifting without power in the Indian Ocean after a fire broke out in the engine room, reports have said.
The Italian coastguard has said that all passengers are safe and the fire is now out.
Cargo ships near the Allegra have been sent to help by the Italian coastguard. The Seychelles is sending a motorboat, a plane and two tugboats to the scene, Coast Guard Cmdr Cosimo Nicastro told SkyTG24 TV.
It is not clear if the passengers will have to be evacuated.
The ship owner Costa Crociere said in a statement there were no injuries or casualties among the 636 passengers and 413 crew members. The company said crew were working to "restore functionality" to the ship.
Costa said the fire aboard the Allegra broke out in near the ship's electric generators.
"The shipboard fire-extinguishing system and procedures were promptly activated and the special firefighting units intervened to extinguish (the) fire," Costa's statement said.
"The fire did not spread to any other area of the ship. There were no injuries or casualties," Costa said. It did not say what caused the fire.
The cruise company said that a general emergency alarm was "promptly sounded" as a precaution, and that all passengers and crew not involved in the emergency reached muster stations.
The ship was about 20 miles from Alphonse Island, one of the atolls in the Seychelles, a nation of islands and atolls that is a popular tourist destination. The Allegra's webcam is currently offline.
Costa Crociere was plunged into the spotlight recently after its liner the Costa Concordia was wrecked off the Italian island of Giglio.
Twenty-five people were killed with the Concordia ran aground on January 13 as Captain Francesco Schettino allegedly performed a "salute" to the people of the Tuscan island.
Seven others are still missing and presumed dead. More than 4,200 passengers and crew were evacuated.