A fire broke out in the early hours of Friday, February 20th, aboard the Liberia-registered cruise vessel World Legacy as she was making way to Singapore, marking a serious incident for the newly launched service of Singapore-based World Cruises. The blaze, preliminarily located in a lounge area on the ninth deck, was brought under control by the crew before Singapore Civil Defence Force marine firefighting teams fully extinguished it.
The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore reported that at the time of the incident there were 271 passengers and 388 crew aboard, and that one crew member, an Indonesian national, later succumbed to the effects of the fire and was transferred ashore. Four passengers were taken to hospital for assessment, but no other serious injuries among crew or passengers were reported.
Following the extinguishing of the fire, all passengers were evacuated to the HarbourFront Ferry Terminal. A core team remained aboard the World Legacy at anchor in Raffles Reserved Anchorage to maintain essential operations, support ongoing investigations and oversee safety checks, while the remainder of the crew was to be disembarked in stages.
Authorities established a safety zone around the vessel and issued navigational warnings to passing traffic. Classification society surveyors engaged by the ship’s owners were expected to board to evaluate the damage and inform subsequent repair plans prior to any return to service. The cause of the fire remained under investigation, with relevant diplomatic and maritime authorities notified.
For more World Legacy incidents and accidents, see the ship's CruiseMinus page.