AN explosion is thought to have sparked an "intense" fire in a cruise ship's engine room that killed two crew yesterday, injured nine people and forced more than 200 passengers to leave a liner off Norway's western coast.Smoke was billowing from MS Nordlys, of Norway's Hurtigruten line, as it pulled into the dock at Aalesund, 375 kilometers northwest of the capital of Oslo. Police cordoned off parts of the town as smoke engulfed nearby buildings.
The ship's emergency evacuation began shortly after the fire started at 9am. More than 100 passengers left in lifeboats while another 207 passengers and 55 crew disembarked at Aalesund. Some crew stayed aboard to fight the fire.Aalesund Hospital said nine people had been admitted, two with serious burns. Police said the injured and dead were crew members.
Acting police chief Yngve Skovly said: "Our suspicion is that there was an explosion in the engine room."
Passengers said the ship, which was traveling north from the city of Bergen, had organized an orderly evacuation.
"We were sent up on deck and given our life jackets," said French tourist Danielle Passebois-Paya. "It took only a few minutes after the alarm and we were in the lifeboats. It was a well-organized evacuation. The crew did a really good job. Everything was calm and went smoothly. There was no panic."
The chief of Aalesund's fire brigade, Geir Thorsen, described the fire as "big and intense." He added: "There are no indications the fire spread to other rooms in the ship."
More than six hours after the fire began, Thorsen said firefighters were now in control, but the ship was taking in water and listing.
"Our main challenge now is the stability of the ship," he said.
The MS Nordlys plies Norway's western coast on a popular 2,500km cruise between Bergen and Kirkenes, high above the Arctic Circle.
The ship's emergency evacuation began shortly after the fire started at 9am. More than 100 passengers left in lifeboats while another 207 passengers and 55 crew disembarked at Aalesund. Some crew stayed aboard to fight the fire.Aalesund Hospital said nine people had been admitted, two with serious burns. Police said the injured and dead were crew members.
Acting police chief Yngve Skovly said: "Our suspicion is that there was an explosion in the engine room."
Passengers said the ship, which was traveling north from the city of Bergen, had organized an orderly evacuation.
"We were sent up on deck and given our life jackets," said French tourist Danielle Passebois-Paya. "It took only a few minutes after the alarm and we were in the lifeboats. It was a well-organized evacuation. The crew did a really good job. Everything was calm and went smoothly. There was no panic."
The chief of Aalesund's fire brigade, Geir Thorsen, described the fire as "big and intense." He added: "There are no indications the fire spread to other rooms in the ship."
More than six hours after the fire began, Thorsen said firefighters were now in control, but the ship was taking in water and listing.
"Our main challenge now is the stability of the ship," he said.
The MS Nordlys plies Norway's western coast on a popular 2,500km cruise between Bergen and Kirkenes, high above the Arctic Circle.
