Cruise Ship adrift off Seychelles after fire

A cruise ship belonging to same company as Costa Concordia with more than 1,000 passengers and crew on board is adrift in the Indian Ocean after a fire broke out in its electrical room. Planes, ships and tug boats are heading towards the Costa Allegra, which is about 200 miles south-west of the Seychelles.
The luxury liner left the port of Diego Suarez in Madagascar on Saturday and was due to arrive in Mahe in the Seychelles on Tuesday.

There were no injuries from the fire, which has not spread to other parts of the vessel.
But the ship is without power and adrift about 20 miles off Alphonse Island in the Indian Ocean.
“The shipboard fire-extinguishing system and procedures were promptly activated and the special fire-fighting squads intervened to extinguish fire,” parent company Costa Cruises said in a statement.
“As a precaution, the general emergency alarm was given and all passengers and crew members not engaged in the management of the emergency reached the muster stations with the relevant safety equipment.
“Inspections on the state of the engine room are on-going, in order to restart the necessary equipment to reactivate the functionality of the ship.”
The ship sent out a distress single and alerted naval authorities, including the Maritime Rescue Control Centre in Rome.
“Costa Crociere and the relevant authorities are acting to provide the ship with the necessary support. Costa Allegra is going to be reached by tugs and other naval and aerial units,” the company said.
On board the ship are 636 passengers of various nationalities and 413 crew members.
The 600ft-long ship was built in Genoa in 1992. It has eight passenger decks and 400 cabins and can carry up to 1,400 people.
The Costa Allegra was on a month-long cruise of the Indian Ocean, the Red Sea and the Mediterranean.
After leaving from Port Louis in Mauritius it made its way to Madagascar. It was then due to head to the Seychelles, Oman, Egypt and Jordan before ending its voyage in Savona near Genoa in Italy next month.
Two web cameras on board the ship, which normally transmit live pictures, were shut down earlier on Monday.
There are 212 Italians on board – 126 passengers and 86 crew. The nationalities of the rest of the passengers and crew are not yet known.
Shares in Carnival, the American company that owns Costa Cruises, fell by nearly two per cent on the New York Stock Exchange on news of the accident.