Engine room fire on Allure

Allure of the Seas today joins an infamous roll-call of cruise ships which have suffered engine room fires this year. Unlike Costa Allegra and Azamara Quest, which were left drifting without power, Allure’s high-tech systems kicked in and prevented serious damage.
The Royal Caribbean ship, en route from St Maarten to Fort Lauderdale, reported a “small and short-lived” fire which broke out at 7.45 pm last night. A company statement said: ” The ship’s high fog system was immediately activated, which contained and extinguished the fire. There were no injuries to guests or crew. The ship is sailing towards Port Everglades were it will arrive on Sunday as scheduled.”
Passengers reported seeing think black smoke pouring from the ship’s funnel, and the 5,400-passenger vessel manoeuvred so that the smoke blew harmlessly away to sea rather than over the decks.
Although less serious than other incidents this year, the incident is the latest in a series of fires and other mishaps that have bedevilled cruising in 2012.
Azamara Quest, operated by a sister Royal Caribbean company, was disabled by an engine room fire while off the coast of Borneo. The vessel was towed into port and later proceeded to Singapore for repairs.
Costa Allegra was left stranded by a generator fire in February, and 1,000 passengers and crew were without power for four days while the vessel was towed to the Seychelles by a French fishing boat.
Other engine failures have affected Saga Sapphire – causing the abandonment of two cruises – and expedition ship Plancius, which sheltered in South Georgia until a relief vessel arrived from the South American mainland to collect the stranded passengers.