The 1,016 people onboard Eleftherios Venizelos had a night from hell, as the ANEK Lines passenger ferry caught fire in the early hours of Wednesday (Greece time) while travelling to Crete.
With 875 passengers and 141 crew, the vessel was en route and off the coast of Hydra island when it reportedly transmitted a distress signal to the coastguard.
The ferry’s crew notified authorities that a car parking compartment had caught fire.
Eleftherios Venizelos had set sail from Piraeus at 10pm and started sending out emergency signals after 12am, a coast guard official said confirming that there were no injuries.
“It was a huge operation and everything went to plan,” said Nikos Lagdianos, spokesman for the coast guard.
“Two firefighting boats, ten tenders, 48 firefighters and two emergency response teams were involved,” as the fire quickly expanded and heavy black smoke billowed out of the ship.
The ANEK ferry was safely escorted back into Piraeus while disembarkation of all passengers was completed around 7am, Kathimerini reports.
“It was difficult to breathe from the smoke,” a passenger named Natassa, told Skai TV explaining that all passengers were advised to wear lifejackets and head to assembly areas as soon as the crew was made aware of the situation.
An investigation to determine the cause of the fire is already underway, although, a first assessment indicated it may have started from one of the 200 vehicles onboard.
Travelers were put up in local hotels by the ferry operator while a replacement vessel is expected to complete the route as soon as possible.
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