Fire crews tackle blaze on ship at Belfast Port

Investigation opened after fire broke out on board ship at Victoria Terminal on West Bank Road

Some 13 fire appliances tackled a blaze on board ship at the Victoria Terminal on West Bank Road. File Photograph: Liam McBurney/PA
Some 13 fire appliances tackled a blaze on board ship at the Victoria Terminal on West Bank Road. File Photograph: Liam McBurney/PA

A total of 13 fire appliances, 61 firefighters and a specialist marine response team were called to a blaze on a ferry in Belfast port on Sunday morning.

The Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service said the fire on the Stena Line ferry at the Victoria Terminal on West Bank Road was reported just after 5am.

A spokesman for Stena Line said a small fire in the exhaust system of the Stena Superfast VII vessel had broken out while the ship was in port in Belfast.

“It was quickly brought under control by trained Stena Line crew but in line with established safety procedures, the emergency services were alerted as a precaution.

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“There were no passengers onboard the vessel at the time and all of the crew are safe and well,” the spokesman said.

The 7.30am sailing from Belfast and the 11.30am sailing from Cairnryan on Sunday were cancelled as a result, with departures resuming from Belfast at 11.30am and from Cairnryan at 3.30pm.

The NIFRS said investigations into the cause of the fire are continuing. - Additional reporting Press Association

Freya McClements

Freya McClements

Freya McClements is Northern Editor of The Irish Times