A Con-Ro vessel that had lost power and gone adrift in the English Channel following an onboard fire earlier this week suffered a second fire incident just hours after the first.
The 28-strong crew of the Grimaldi-owned Grande Brasile were safely evacuated as responding tugs worked to contain the blaze that had ignited on one of the decks at around 16:00 local time on Tuesday, February 18.
A separate blaze had broke out on one deck in the early morning of Tuesday but was successfully extinguished by the vessel's fixed fire suppression system. Because it was initially apparent that the ship had suffered no further damage, the crew were allowed to remain on board.
A Dutch tug, a French rescue vessel, and boats from the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) had arrived on-scene earlier in the day on Tuesday and had been placed on standby, ready to provide assistance if needed.
An RNLI rescue boat has since brought all of Grande Brasile's crew to shore. No injuries have been reported.
Grimaldi has selected Netherlands-based Smit Salvage to tow the damaged Con-Ro to port.
Three other Grimaldi vessels have suffered onboard fire incidents over the last few years. In 2019, the Con-Ro Grande America and the vehicle carrier Grande Europa both caught fire on separate occasions while underway.
A little over four years later, the Con-Ro Grande Costa D'Avorio was berthed at Port Newark in New Jersey when a blaze ignited on board. Two firefighters that boarded the ship in an attempt to contain the blaze were killed.