A fire broke which broke out on a Stena Line ferry travelling from Wexford to Pembrokeshire had led to the scrambling of emergency services.

Life jackets were worn by passengers on board the Stena Europe which was sailing from Rosslare to Fishguard on Saturday night.

The crew of the 1,400 passenger ferry which has been on the Ireland-Wales route since 2002, were able to extinguish a blaze which took place in the engine room said HM Coastguard.

The ferry operator said all 88 passengers and 59 crew were unharmed and got off safely, and the Stena Europe has been taken out of service during an investigation.

According to a passenger, Stephen Kearney, said people were "understandably nervous but very calm".

"There was an announcement to the crew, advising it was not a drill and they should take up positions," he said.

"Smoke began to circulate and I could see smoke from the funnel".

"Life jackets were issued and crew members assisted passengers with life jackets," he added.

BBC News which has more on the story on the 1981 built ferry which arrived safely into Fishguard Harbour from where passengers disembarked.

A €7 million superyacht was sunk on Saturday evening (29 May) after bursting into a “fire ball” in a Devon harbour, as Devon Live reports.

The 85ft Rendezvous, built in 2010 by Princess Yachts, was carrying 2,000 gallons of fuel when the blaze broke out shortly before noon — sending clouds of black smoke across Torquay and causing a hazardous oil slick on the water.

No one was injured in the fire, which completely engulfed the luxury vessel and dealt significant damage to the nearby pier after it broke from its pontoon mooring in the intense heat.

Devon Live has more on the story HERE.

Kinsale yachtsman Alan Mulcahy's recently arrived First Class 8 'Black Magic' yacht has been lost after a fire on board the boat at the weekend. 

The yacht went up in flames and sank off Ringabella, just outside Cork Harbour on Monday afternoon during a scheduled delivery trip back to Mulcahy's home port of Kinsale Harbour in West Cork.

The dramatic scene was witnessed by nearby boats and people on the shoreline.

The smoke plume clearly visible from the shore. See videos below

The yacht had competed in October's recent AIB Royal Cork Yacht Club Autumn Series and this month's O'Leary Insurances Winter League and was due to be lifted out and stored ashore for the winter at Kinsale Boatyard.

Black Magic on fire following a problem with the outboard engine. Photo: courtesy Cian O'Connor

Mulcahy, the only person onboard the boat at the time of the incident, told Afloat that he was approximately an hour into his trip when he heard a bang and saw the vessel's outboard engine on fire.

Mulcahy, who is a very experienced sailor with over 30 years experience and Yachtmaster certification, put out a mayday call via his VHF radio that was answered by a nearby trawler who relayed the message to the Coastguard.

Mulcahy said he made his way to the bow of the boat as flames engulfed the cockpit area.

Fortunately, a nearby 20-foot opening fishing boat, the Annabella, skippered by Mick Hoey and crewed by Cian O'Connor, saw the flames and rescued Mulcahy from the burning fibreglass vessel.

Alan Mulcahy's recently arrived First Class 8 'Black Magic' that went on fire and sank off the Cork coast Photo: Bob Bateman

Mulcahy said that the yacht sank shortly afterwards. He was then transferred from the Annabella and taken ashore to Crosshaven by a Port of Cork RIB skipped by Kieran Coniry.

Mulcahy expressed his deep gratitude to all involved in the rescue including the Coastguard, the fishermen on board Annabella, the Port of Cork RIB crew and Gary Heslin of the Crosshaven RNLI and the staff and doctors who then assessed him for smoke and fire inhalation.

It is the second incident to befall racing yachts at Cork Harbour this winter, with a J109 ending up on the rocks in the last race of the Royal Cork league as Afloat reported here. 

• Fisherman Mick Hoey spoke to Joe Duffy on RTE Radio One about how he and crewman Cian saved Yachtsman Alan Mulcahy here

Video footage shows what’s left of a luxury motor yacht after it was destroyed by fire off the south of France.

As Marine Industry News reports, the 29m Sanlorenzo yacht Reine d’Azur had been on a charter trip off the Îles d’Hyères when the fire broke out in the early hours of yesterday morning (Wednesday 11 August).

Local news reports say all seven guests and three crew were safely evacuated from the vessel and the blaze was brought under control shortly after 10am. The cause is as yet unknown.

Elsewhere, a yacht from the iconic Preini Navi shipyard ran aground on the Italian island of Stromboli, north of Sicily.

The 24.2m sailing yacht Malizia, built in 1989 for Prince Rainier III of Monaco, was seen today (Thursday 12 August) half submerged as its hull lay propped up on the rocky shore.

Marine Industry News has more on the story HERE.

Today, Friday (30 April) will see fire crews resume their attempts to put out a blaze onboard (Alta) a so-called ghost ship on the Cork coast.

A spokesperson from Cork County Council (see related story) said firefighting operations ended around 9pm on Thursday night "due to the rising tide and poor light".

The fire was, they said, "substantially extinguished" and is due to be assessed on Friday morning.

Council chiefs and gardaí have again urged members of the public to avoid the area and not to attempt to gain access to the wreck which "has been further damaged by the fire and is in an unsafe condition".

Gardaì will continue to monitor the situation overnight.

The Cork County Fire Service was called out to the scene of the MV Alta (an abandoned ship that ran aground last year) near Ballycotton, East Cork, on Thursday afternoon.

For more on this development, the Irish Examiner reports. 

#CoastalNotes - In north Wales, fire crews BBC News reports have been fighting a large blaze at a workshop on Holyhead Marina.

An eyewitness said "30ft high flames" were coming out of the roof of a marine engineering workshop after reports of an "explosion" on social media.

North Wales Fire Service had four crews tackling the fire on Anglesey, which started at about 21:10 BST on Thursday.

Ynys Mon MP Albert Owen tweeted there were "no reported injuries" and the area around the Holyhead RNLI station was evacuated as a precaution.

"Emergency services have the matter under control," he added.

Holyhead Port, one of the UK's busiest ports with daily ferries to the Republic of Ireland, said the fire was not affecting its operations.

The Welsh Ambulance Service said it had been made aware of the fire but paramedics were not required.

The fire service confirmed the blaze had been brought under control by 23:30.

For more on the incident, the BBC has more by clicking here.

#Fire - A number of fire brigade units worked together to bring a blaze in the dunes at Curracloe beach in Co Wexford earlier today, Sunday 22 July.

According to TheJournal.ie, the flames were at some points reaching 10 feet high as the fire broke out amid dry vegetation close to the beach, which was hosting hundreds of people for a Leinster Open Sea swimming race.

The Tracie Lawlor Memorial Swim was abandoned as the beach was evacuated for safety, and no injuries have been reported.

TheJournal.ie has more on the story HERE.

#Explosion - A French yachtsman had a lucky escape after an explosion on his yacht that quickly engulfed the vessel in flames.

As Practical Boat Owner reports, the solo sailor called 999 for British emergency services after the incident on his 36-foot yacht some 15 nautical miles off Sunderland in the north-east of England early yesterday morning (Friday 22 August).

The man was winched to safety from his liferaft by a rescue helicopter from RAF Boulmer as lifeboats from Hartlepool RNLI also attended the scene to secure the area around the burning yacht.

"Fortunately, the sailor was uninjured but it was very sad to see his yacht burn and then sink so quickly," said Hartlepool coxswain Robbie Maiden.

"We understand the boat was his home and he was sailing from Iceland to Holland, but it looks like he’s lost nearly everything."

#TrawlerFire - RTÉ News is reporting on a fire on a fishing trawler in Galway Harbour that's prompted the precautionary evacuation of buildings in the area.

Though the fire has been put out by emergency services, there is some concern about a container of gas used as fuel for welding work on board the vessel.

RTÉ News has much more on the story, including video, HERE.

At a hearing today at Southampton Crown Court the owner and manager of a fishing vessel were fined a total of £180,000 including costs. They had pleaded guilty to charges relating to health and safety offences brought under fishing vessel safety legislation

On 7 January 2008 the UK registered fishing vessel Shark sailed from La Corunna in Spain with a crew of 16, mainly Spanish and Portuguese nationals.  On 19 January 2008 the Shark suffered a severe accommodation fire while at sea approximately 17 miles to the west of Malin Head.  The fire on board the Shark was extensive.  It extended to the galley kitchen, and three cabins used by the crew for sleeping, to alleyways in the accommodation section of the boat and the upper parts of the vessel.  In two of the sleeping cabins the bunks, bedding, furnishings and lockers were totally consumed by fire.  The crew were badly affected by smoke.

A major search and rescue operation, involving UK and Irish Coastguard, helicopters, lifeboats and Irish Navy, took place. Fourteen of the crew were evacuated by lifeboat and helicopter from the vessel. The fire was extinguished by members of the Irish Navy. The Shark eventually made it to Killybegs, Republic of Ireland.

After arrival the vessel was inspected by surveyors from the MCA. Several major defects were noted, many of which were noted to have pre-dated the fire and affected the safe operation of the vessel.  An investigation by the Enforcement Unit of the Maritime and Coastguard Agency was started into the operation of the Shark by its owner, Generic Enterprises Ltd, and managers, Hooktone Ltd.

At an earlier hearing in Magistrates Court, the owner of the Shark, Generic Enterprises Ltd had pleaded guilty to a charge brought under the Merchant Shipping and Fishing Vessels (Health and Safety at Work) Regulations 1997 for failing to ensure the health and safety of the crew. However owing to the seriousness of the offence, the matter was passed to Crown Court for sentencing.   At today's hearing, they were fined £100,000 plus costs of £35,000.

Following legal argument, the vessel's managers, Hooktone Ltd., changed their plea to guilty for a breach of the Merchant Shipping and Fishing Vessels (Health and Safety at Work) Regulations 1997 for failing to ensure the health and safety of the crew.  They were fined £20,000 plus costs of £25,000.

His Honour Judge Ralls QC stated that Generic Enterprises Ltd had a high responsibility for the safety of the crew and vessel and that their duty had fallen well below standard.  He also pointed out that Generic Enterprises Ltd had adopted a cavalier attitude to safety. When passing sentence He added that Hooktone Ltd culpability for the offence was at a lower level.