By IANS,
Rome : An Italian cruise ship was adrift off the Indian Ocean island country of Seychelles following a fire on board. All passengers and crew were however safe, reports said Monday.
The ship — Costa Allegra — is adrift 260 nautical miles off Seychelles but flames have been extinguished, and no injuries or casualties were reported among the total 636 passengers and 413 crew members, Xinhua quoted the ship operator Costa Cruises as saying in a statement.
The fire reportedly occurred in the engine room of the 187-metre ship and was prevented from spreading to other parts of the ship by the ship’s firefighters.
There was now a blackout in the vessel, which is currently without propulsion and is waiting to be towed, Italian news agency ANSA quoted sources as saying.
The operations centre of the Italian Coast Guard have despatched three commercial and two fishing boats for rescue while the Seychelles authorities have sent two tugs, a ship and a plane.