In a prompt reaction to an alert from the crew of the St Faith ferry (1990-built, IMO 8907228), multiple emergency services were deployed to the Wightlink ferry terminal in Portsmouth Harbour yesterday afternoon. The passenger ship, conducting the 3:00 p.m. service from Fishbourne, encountered issues upon arrival at the Portsmouth terminal at 3:40 p.m., prompting the crew to notify emergency personnel.
A spokeswoman for HM Coastguard reported that they responded to a report of a fire onboard a passenger ferry at Portsmouth Harbour entrance on Sunday, January 7, at ~3:30 p.m.
Portsmouth and Hillhead coastguard rescue teams, Gosport independent lifeboat, Hampshire Police, Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service, and South-Central Ambulance Service were dispatched.
All passengers were safely evacuated.
Wightlink later confirmed that the incident led to the St Faith being taken out of service. The spokeswoman clarified that there was no actual fire on the ship; instead, smoke detected in the passenger lounge triggered the distress call. Fortunately, no injuries were reported during the incident. As a result, the Portsmouth to Fishbourne route had to operate as a one-boat service.
Affected passengers were promptly rebooked on the Victoria of Wight, and Wightlink issued apologies for any inconvenience caused. Subsequent investigations by the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Fire and Rescue Service revealed that the reported smell of smoke was a false alarm, attributed to fumes from an electrical light in the passenger lounge.