A fire broke out on a ferry sailing from Greece to Italy on Friday with 288 people on board, the Greek Coast Guard said.
All passengers of the Euroferry Olympia, flying the Italian flag, which was heading to Italy from Greece city of Igoumenitsa, are safe and on lifeboats, Secretary of State for merchant mariner Kostas Katsafados told Greek radio station Skai.
The Coast Guard said 237 passengers and 51 crew members were on board. No casualties were reported and police said three tugs and three patrol boats were dispatched to help passengers.
There were no immediate reports of dead or injured.
“The captain of Euroferry Olympia has asked passengers to leave the boat,” police said.
They were transported to the neighboring Greek island of Corfu, the Greek Coast Guard said, leading the rescue operation.
The Incident took place around 4:30 a.m. (1:30 a.m. GMT) off the north coast of Corfu, between Greece and Albania, a official of the Greek Coast Guard press office told Agence France-Presse (AFP).
the cause of the fire is not yet known and an investigation has begun, the agency said.
