One fatality in cruise ship blaze
One passenger died of a heart attack when a fire broke out in the early hours of yesterday morning on board Star Princess in the Caribbean.
The ship was carrying 2,690 passengers including 66 UK-booked passengers, none of whom was injured as a result of the fire, a statement from the US cruise line said.
The blaze started at 03:10 in a cabin and spread to others as Star Princess was cruising from Grand Cayman to Montego Bay.
“Passengers were immediately notified of the fire using the public address system and requested to report to their muster stations. Crew subsequently completed a full check to account for all passengers and crew,” the Princess statement said.
It continued: “We deeply regret having to confirm that there has been one passenger fatality following a cardiac arrest, two passengers with significant smoke inhalation injuries and nine passengers with minor complications resulting from smoke inhalation. The injured passengers are in a stable condition and have been cared for in the ship’s medical centre.”
The line said cause of the fire was unknown and a full damage assessment was being carried out after the ship arrived in Montego Bay.
Star Princess sailed from Fort Lauderdale on March 19 on a western Caribbean itinerary with calls at Cozumel, Grand Cayman, Montego Bay and Princess Cays.
A special telephone number has been set up for inquiries from immediate family of UK passengers who were on board at: 0845 3 555 999.
Report by Phil Davies
Phil Davies
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