Tirrenia Vincenzo Florio ferry accidents and incidents

29 May 2009Fire Accident

On May 29, 2009, while en-route from Naples to Palermo, approx 15 ml (25 km) off Ustica Island the ship suffered a fire accident. The fire broke out in Upper Garage decks (5-6). All passengers abandoned the vessel through its lifeboats and embarked on another ferry.

Initially, most of the crew stayed on the ship to help coastguard firefighters, but as the flames were spreading quickly, the Captain ordered a complete evacuation. Of all the 526 passengers and 53 crew, some 50 people were hospitalized, but none with serious injuries.

Subsequently, the ferry was towed to Palermo. The fire was finally extinguished on June 2. The vessel was decommissioned for a long period of time. The cause of the accident remains unknown.

18 December 2004Fire Accident

On December 18, 2004, while en-route from Palermo to Naples, the ship experienced an electrical system failure, which caused the engines to shut down. Due to rough sea, some vehicles parked on the garage decks overturned, and one car triggered a fire.

Ship's fire-fighting system automatically activated and poured hundreds of tons of seawater. Soon the fire was extinguished, but the ship was tilted about 10 degrees to starboard. Subsequently, the crew managed to restart the engines and the liner managed to arrive at Palermo. All 471 passengers were disembarked via fire brigade ladders as the stern ramp doors failed to open.

18 November 2001Ship Collision / Allision

On November 18, 2001, while departing from Port Naples, due to strong northeast winds the ship struck Molo Martello Pier.

As a result of the collision, the vessel started taking on water but managed to return back into the harbor. The ferry was repaired in Naples and resumed service on December 8.

Note: Actually, this type of marine accident is called “allision” (striking a fixed object) as opposed to “collision” striking another vessel).

04 October 1999Ship Collision / Allision

On October 4, 1999, the day of the vessel's delivery by Ferrari Shipyards (in Port Naples, Italy) the ferry crashed onto the ocean liner "The Topaz" (1955-built as RMS Empress of Britain, 2008-scrapped).

The operated under charter by Peace Boat liner carried 900 passengers.

As a result of the crash, the liner suffered a hull gap of 20 m (65 ft), while the ferry suffered bow hull damage.

The accident was due to bad weather.