Fire at sea - Fire on Mallorca ferry: passengers at sea for 24 hours
Due to a fire on board their ferry "Tenacia" to Mallorca, 350 passengers had to endure approximately 24 hours at sea. Instead of reaching the holiday island on Monday morning, they were transferred to replacement ships and returned to their departure port of Valencia. They were expected to arrive there on Monday evening, according to the Italian shipping company GNV in response to an inquiry. Fortunately, no one was injured.
The car ferry "Tenaci" had set sail from the harbor city on the Spanish mainland towards Palma on Sunday evening, where it was supposed to arrive on Monday morning, the shipping company added. However, around midnight, a fire broke out in the engine room. The "Tenacia" had to stop and the fire was initially put out with onboard equipment, but the flames did not extinguish quickly. The captain eventually ordered the evacuation of the ship on Monday afternoon. Professional firefighters were flown in by helicopter.
The Spanish rescue service transferred the passengers and some crew members, who all had to put on life jackets, to two other ships in the vicinity using smaller boats. The people had to slide down a rescue slide from the high ferry into the small rescue boats of the rescue service in the water.
They were then taken back to Valencia because that was where the damaged ship was being towed, as the cars and luggage of the passengers were left behind there.
In Valencia, the people were to be accommodated in hotels for one night, according to the announcement from the shipping company, in order to finally reach the holiday island with their cars and luggage on a replacement ferry on Tuesday. The cause of the fire was initially unknown.
Despite the unexpected circumstances, many passengers viewed their altered vacation as an opportunity to explore Valencia further. The happiness derived from discovering new aspects of Spain offset the initial disappointment.
The tourism industry in Majorca was not directly affected by the incident, as the passengers were not scheduled to arrive until Monday. However, news of the ship fire may have caused some potential travelers to reconsider their plans.
The shipping company assured that it would provide compensation for the lost vacation days and any additional expenses incurred due to the incident. This included covering the cost of staying in hotels in Valencia and traveling to Majorca on a replacement ferry the following day.
While the ordeal was undeniably stressful, the incident highlighted the importance of safety measures and emergency protocols in the shipping industry. The swift response of the Spanish rescue service and GNV ensured the safety of all passengers and crew members involved in the incident.
