The Norman Atlantic is an Italian flagged 26,900-tonne, roll-on roll-off ferry chartered by Greek ferry company ANEK, built in 2009 and previously operated in Italy. The fire broke out before dawn Sunday on a car deck while the ship was sailing from the Greek port of Patras to Ancona in Italy.
The boat was sailing 44 nautical miles northwest of the island of Corfu when it radioed for help.

Initial reports say the fire began around 6.30 am though Italian officials claim it was 4.30 am. The adrift ship was carrying 422 passengers and 56 crew members, plus more than 200 vehicles. Of those on board, 234 passengers and 34 crew are Greek, according to Greek Merchant Marine spokesman Nikos Lagadianos.

There are also passengers from France, Belgium, Turkey, Albania, Italy, Germany and Switzerland. One hundred and ninety passengers are said to have been evacuated by late Sunday night, with 287 still on board.

It was an extremely difficult night as the hail, rain and merciless winds of up to 55 mph made it impossible for most passengers to hold on in the vessels battling massive waves and low temperatures. According to reports at least one person died and two were injured. Italy’s coastguard confirmed to have recovered only one body of a man who threw himself off the burning ferry with his wife. The man is Greek, his name is Georgios Doulis. His wife, Theodora, was rescued and taken to Brindisi. She is well in terms of health but still in shock.

“We are outside, we are very cold, the ship is full of smoke,” passenger Giorgos Stiliaras told Greek Mega TV on a phone-call conveying the emotions of the trapped passengers.

“The boat is still burning, the floors are boiling. People are being awakened by the smell of burning plastic.”

Vision from the Italian Coastguard:

Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras has been in constant contact with Matteo Renzi, his Italian counterpart, throughout the operation. Italian and Greek military and coast guard rescue crews are struggling to rescue all passengers.

Ten merchant ships are in the area assisting rescue efforts and have already taken on dozens of passengers from the burning ferry, and will remain in the area until the end of the operation according to Greek Merchant Marine Minister Miltiadis Varvitsiotis. Italian Defense Minister Roberta Pinotti stated rescue operations would continue overnight; the Italian Coast Guard coordinating the rescue managed to extinguish the flames with the help of the Greek military.

The fire kept blazing for more than 16 hours, creating dense black smoke that made it almost impossible for the Italian Air Force to fly over the ship and area. An Albanian coastguard vessel took part. Flying overhead were a C-130 military transport plane, five helicopters and a Super Puma helicopter, that later had to be grounded due to heavy winds and smoke.

“With the wind, smoke entered into the helicopter cabin, acrid smoke,” Major Antonio Laneve told Italian state TV, adding that a lot of survivors were afraid to be hoisted up by helicopters, given the challenging weather conditions.

Nearby merchant ships voluntarily lined up to form a barrier to protect the operation from towering waves. The Italian Coast Guard, which was coordinating the rescue operation running in its waters, said those flames visible from the outside of the ship had been extinguished by about 8:30 pm (1930 GMT), about 16 hours after the blaze began. But the ferry was still enveloped in dense smoke, which the Coast Guard probably said was being fuelled by some hotspots inside the ship.

Varvitsiotis said it was “one of the most complex search and rescue operations we have dealt with in recent years.”

Many Greek and Italian passengers were found in lifeboat rescue chutes or in the water wearing life-jackets, and have been treated for hypothermia in the nearby Italian city of Lecce.

“They called first on women and children to be evacuated from the ship. Ships could not approach us because of the rain and winds. We were at least four hours on the deck, in the cold and rain,” Vassiliki Tavrizelou, who was rescued along with her 2-year-old daughter, told The Associated Press from Lecce.

“The ship alarm went off and I saw fire from my cabin. Then we heard explosions,” she added.

At the moment the Norman Atlantic is located 13 miles from the Albanian port of Vlore, though it is more likely to be towed to either Otranto or Brindisi in Italy after the cables and fuel are secured.

The chief executive of the Visenti Group which owns the ferry, said it recently passed a technical inspection after repairs to a faulty fire door.

“The inspectors did uncover a slight malfunction in one of the fire doors, number 112, situated on bridge number 5, the one where, according to the information we have so far, the fire developed,” Carlos Visentini said.

“This was immediately repaired to the satisfaction of the inspectors and therefore the boat was able to continue in service.”

Stay tuned for updates.