PORTLAND, Maine — A cruise ship docked on the Portland waterfront caught fire Wednesday morning after an explosion in its engine room.
It happened shortly before 7:30 a.m. on the Ocean Navigator, docked on the Ocean Gateway pier. The ship, owned by American Queen Voyages, came to Portland from a port in Provincetown, Massachusetts and was bound for Halifax, Nova Scotia, Portland Fire Chief Keith Gautreau told NEWS CENTER Maine. American Queen Voyages said in an update that the rest of the trip to Canada had been canceled.
Nearly 130 passengers and more than 80 crew members were evacuated, Gautreau said, adding one crew member was taken to a local hospital for serious burn injuries on their hands and arms. All passengers and crew members have been accounted for, according to Gautreau.
Passengers were supposed to spend Wednesday night on the ship and disembark the ship on Thursday, but it's now unclear if they can sleep on the ship Wednesday night, according to Gautreau. Passengers were gathered in the Ocean Gateway terminal Wednesday morning awaiting next steps, and they were expected to spend Wednesday on land doing tours and sightseeing, Gautreau said.
"The investigation continues and testing of the ship’s generators and propulsion systems are ongoing to determine impacts and operational capability," Ryan Koroknay with the U.S. Coast Guard told NEWS CENTER Maine in an email Thursday. "Depending on these tests/results, the ship may need to be towed to a yet to be determined location where necessary repairs can be completed."
An American Queen Voyages spokesperson told NEWS CENTER Maine in an update guests on the ship would be housed at a local hotel.
Much of the crew is from other countries, so customs agents will review paperwork to see which crew members can leave the fenced-in pier area, Kulesa said.
Officials were able to stabilize the engine room issue and remained on scene to assist with extensive ventilation efforts and complete overhaul to prevent any further spread, Gautreau said. The incident was considered under control around 7:45 a.m., according to officials.
The United States Coast Guard is leading the investigation with the Office of the State Fire Marshal, Gautreau said, adding the explosion was due to an onboard generator. The city of Portland has not built "shore power" on the piers or terminal, so docked ships must run their generators the whole time to keep systems online, according to Gautreau.
NEWS CENTER Maine asked Gautreau about any potential contrast when working a scene on a ship, as opposed to structures on land.
"It’s completely different, completely different tactics," he said. "You’re below deck usually, and engine fires are really small and compartmentalized."
After nearly seven hours in the terminal, the passengers and crew boarded the ship again to offload luggage, then busses arrived, loaded passengers, and transported them away.
Debbie Herring walked out of the terminal with her husband instead and said they would be going to a hotel she had already booked—which would be paid for by the cruise line—while the passengers on the buses would be dropped off at another hotel booked by the company.
Herring said she did not hear the explosion—which was in the bottom floor of the ship—from her fourth deck cabin, but was instead woken up by the ship’s alarm system and crew members banging on doors and announcing the ship was to be evacuated.
"At first you don’t believe it’s happening, because… it was 7:30. We weren’t out of bed yet," she said.
Despite spending nearly seven hours in the terminal, Herring, who said she had traveled on 15-20 cruises over the past decade, was in good spirits and praised the crew.
"They really took care of us," she smiled. "They brought us food and water. They kept us informed. I mean, yeah, it’s a long seven hours, but they did a really good job."
Herring gathered her husband and walked into Portland’s Old Port neighborhood, while questions remained about the health of the injured crew member and the sea-worthiness of the small cruise ship left behind.
On Friday, Koroknay said in an update the incident had been classified as a Major Marine Casualty due to the extent of the damage and associated repair costs.
"The generator casualty caused significant damage to other engineering systems aboard the vessel," Koroknay said. "On Thursday, October 19th Sector Northern New England approved a plan from the vessel’s operating company and crew to tow the vessel to a berth at Turner Island in South Portland, Maine to further assess damage and coordinate a repair proposal."
As of Friday, no update on the injured crewmember's condition was available, according to officials.
The cause of the generator casualty remains under investigation.