Fire breaks out on cargo ship off Isle of Wight
Joey PogsonA fire has broken out in the engine room of a cargo ship off the coast of the Isle of Wight.
HM Coastguard said it was responding to the fire on board the Caesarea Trader at anchor east of Shanklin.
The coastguard search and rescue helicopter was sent to undertake thermal imaging of the vessel, along with Bembridge RNLI lifeboat and tugs from Portsmouth.
Operator DFDS said the fire was under control and all crew members, and the one passenger who was travelling with the vessel, were safe.
It said the 126m (413ft) long ship was "anchored in a safe location" off the Isle of Wight.
Ship tracking websites show the vessel in the English Channel about four nautical miles from the coast of the Isle of Wight.
The Caesarea Trader - previously named Commodore Goodwill - was reflagged under the UK flag last year and transports freight between the Channel Islands and Portsmouth.
It is has a cargo capacity of 1,250 cubic metres, the equivalent of about 80 trailers.
DFDS said it was "making necessary steps to maintain continuity of freight links to Jersey".
The ferry served the Channel Islands for nearly 30 years before it was bought by the Danish-based company in 2025.
It was renamed Caesarea Trader in homage to Jersey's Latin name, Caesarea.
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