The Mallorca-bound ferry which caught fire early Monday morning between Valencia and Palma, the GNV ferry ‘Tenacia’, finally docked in the Port of Valencia this morning accompanied by the tug ‘Marta Mata’, from the Salvamento Marítimo maritime rescue service, and the privately owned ‘VB Xerea’.
On board the ‘Tenacia’ are 31 of its crew, including the captain, and six firefighters from the Generalitat de Catalunya, who are monitoring a hot spot in a truck in the hold. The operation is being supervised by the Rescue Coordination Centre in Mallorca under the direction of the Capitanía Marítima de Palma.
Meanwhile, the 350 passengers evacuated from the ‘MSC Arica’ - a container freighter - and the ‘GNV Bridge’ ferry - a passenger ferry from Palma to Valencia - arrived in Valencia on Monday night. The company offered hotel accommodation to those affected and will relocate them on a new route to Palma. However, many of them left luggage and vehicles on board the ‘Tenacia’ which they have yet to recover.
Meanwhile, the shipping company is re-planning its routes as it has been forced to do without the ‘Tenacia’ for its regular operations. The ‘Tenacia’ was left adrift at 02.00 hours on Monday following a fire in the engine room, leaving 350 passengers and 61 crew members stranded at sea. The fire was extinguished by the ship’s own fire fighters, although the smoke reached deck 3.
Nine members of the Generalitat de Catalunya fire brigade were deployed to the ship to finish the work with foam and assess the situation. They coordinated with the Ibiza fire brigade for logistical matters. The fire activated the safety protocols of the Salvamento coordination centres in Palma, Barcelona, Tarragona and Madrid and the Capitanía Marítima de Palma. Under the direction of the Capitanía Marítima, the rescue ships ‘Acrux’, ‘Libertas’ and the vessels ‘SAR Mesana’ and ‘Marta Mata’ were mobilised by sea, and the helicopters ‘Helimer 221’, ‘Helimer 207’ and ‘Helimer 203’ were deployed by air.
It was a nightmare ordeal for many of the passengers. More than twelve hours after the incident, with the situation under control by Maritime Rescue, the passengers were transferred to another ferry from the same shipping line in order to return them to their port of origin. First of all, the children and the most vulnerable people were evacuated, and then the operation continued, controlled at all times by Salvamento Marítimo and by the crew of the receiving vessel. All passengers wore their life jackets at all times and during the transfer operation.
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