Investigation launched following fire on P.E.I. ferry; crew unloads vehicles Sunday

The Transportation Safety Board of Canada is investigating after more than 200 people on board the MV Holiday Island ferry had to abandon ship Friday morning due to a fire in its engine room.

Vice President of Northumberland Ferries Don Cormier said in a statement the ship docked at Wood Islands, P.E.I., Sunday around 8:30 a.m.

"Stability was verified, evacuation slides were disconnected and recovered ashore, anchors disconnected, and tugs secured to the ship," he said.

It is believed the fire was successfully extinguished late Saturday afternoon however, the process to confirm the scene has cleared is just beginning.

"There will be several other activities around safety including verifying ship stability, structural integrity, dewatering, and further environmental protection measures," added Cormier.

Cormier told reporters on Sunday the cause of the fire is under investigation and is currently unknown.

"Anything with regards to the root cause is purely speculative, but we will be cooperating with all of the agencies," he said.

Officials said Saturday that the fire was contained in the engine room and funnels of the ship however, smoke could still be seen.

The ferry left port in Caribou, N.S., at 10 a.m. on Friday, travelling to Wood Islands, P.E.I.

The fire started just after 11 a.m.

"The alarms went off, and I’m on the ship a lot, and I’ve never heard those before," said passenger John Kenny.

"I kind of thought it was a false alarm. They were pretty loud. They went on for a couple of minutes before we heard an announcement that there was actually a fire on the ship."

The ferry had all but finished its trip across the Northumberland Strait when the trouble began.

"You go outside and you see fire above your head. You’re like, 'Okay, this is actually real? This is happening?' especially when they told us we had to wear a life vest," said Chelsey Wilson.

Kenny says crew members tried calming down children onboard.

"My son was with me, he’s eight, and he was quite scared, because, I don’t know what they watch on TV, but it kind of felt like a Titanic on a smaller level when it started happening," he said.

According to Northumberland Ferries Limited, which operates the ferry, onboard efforts to distinguish the fire were discontinued out of an "abundance of caution" for the safety of the ship’s crew and firefighters due to its condition.

"Boundary cooling water. It’s found its way into the bilges, basically resulted in a bit of a list of the ship, so that’s why those activities were ceased last night," said Cormier, in an interview with CTV News.

Director General for Marine Safety and Security with Transport Canada Julie Gascon said the ship undergoes annual inspections in the delegated statutory inspection program.

"The vessel was last inspected by the classification society on May 11th 2022," she said.

No injuries have been reported.

The ferry operator says the vessel was intentionally run aground outside the harbour entrance to Wood Islands, where life rafts were deployed.

Wilson says she had to hold her daughter "for dear life" as the two slid down the emergency exit.

"I asked if she could go on my lap and they said, 'Yes, for sure.' You had to have your legs open to slow down your speed, and I was just petrified going down the slide the whole time," she said.

Six different fire departments, the coast guard and the P.E.I. RCMP, along with various emergency responders attended the scene.

According to the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre in Halifax, 182 passengers safely disembarked immediately, while 18 crew members and seven local firefighters remained on board.

Prime Minster Justin Trudeau also commented on the fire during his visit to P.E.I. on Friday.

"I want to thank first responders who responded extremely quickly, and there were local fishers involved in helping people out. This was a really, really scary situation for everyone involved, so our thoughts are with them," said Trudeau.

"We’re working to give them the support needed," he said to reporters. "I just spoke with Premier King, who I assured would have full federal cooperation on anything that’s necessary."

Premier King said crews from the Canadian Red Cross and other emergency organizations were on the ground helping passengers with anything they might need, including accommodations, supplies and transportation.

"These crews will continue to support the passengers and their families in the days ahead," King said in a news release Friday.

He added that Health PEI prepared for the possibility of a large number of patients needing care, though that was not necessary.

Cormier said officials are working to unload cargo and passenger vehicles from the ship.

"The logistics of, first of all, individuals recovering their vehicles – the timeline is really a function of their location and getting logistics to get them to the terminal," he said. "We also will likely have to deliver some vehicles to people that have left the province, so it will take some time for people to recover their vehicles."

At this time, there is no obvious damage to the vehicles on board.

Additionally, Northumberland Ferries is requesting passengers waiting on their vehicles do not return to the terminal until directed to do so.

"We will continue to separately and directly communicate with our customers concerning all of the above," said Cormier.

For the remainder of the summer season, Garcon said it is anticipated that the MV Confederation ferry will be used for foreseeable crossings.

Northumberland Ferries said all Woods Islands-Caribou services have been cancelled until at least Tuesday morning. Scheduling updates can be found online.

The TSB said information is being collected to be assessed during the investigation.