Fire drama as P&O cruise passengers evacuated after mobility scooter explodes

27 October 2023 , 13:10

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The atrium of the cruise ship had to be evacuated after the explosion (Image: antonio.lacson/Facebook)

Passengers were forced to flee the central hub of a cruise ship - later involved in the doomed Verity crew search - after a fire broke out when someone's mobility scooter exploded.

Footage taken on Saturday afternoon on board the P&O cruise ship Iona shows people evacuating the vessel's atrium - which houses the dining and entertainment areas. The incident happened while the ship was still in dock in Southampton, with the blaze extinguished by on board detection systems, a spokesperson confirmed.

Three days later, the cruise ship was involved in the search for missing crew members of the downed Verity cargo boat, which sunk after a collision in the North Sea. One person died and two others were pulled from the water, though four remained missing when the search was called off yesterday.

A flash of flames can be seen on the atrium balcony as the smoke alarm goes off (antonio.lacson/Facebook)

A crew member can be seen on his phone as others gather around (antonio.lacson/Facebook)

A passenger on the Iona - who did not wish to be named - told the Mirror the evacuation took place around 5pm. They said: "The fire was a mobility scooter lithium battery. The atrium had to be evacuated and crew worked hard to get everything back to normal. The battery was left in Southampton. It was more smoke than a fire."

Video seen by the Mirror shows people sitting on the ground floor of the atrium when a bang sends a spark from the above balcony and a scream can be heard. The smoke alarm then begins sounding. The camera pans up to the raised area and a flash of light can be seen. Confused passengers look on as an elderly man with crutches is helped away by several people. A crew member can be seen with a phone to his ear as people wait nearby.

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The P&O cruise ship the Iona set sail from Southampton on Saturday (PA)

The P&O spokesperson said: "There was a fire in Iona's atrium which was caused by a lithium battery on a mobility scooter. Thankfully it was swiftly extinguished by our fire detection systems." It's understood the incident did not delay the ship setting off by any great length of time and after spending a day at sea, it docked for some time in Hamburg, Germany.

In the early hours of Tuesday, the Iona then responded to distress calls after the British cargo ship the Verity - which had seven crew on board - crashed into fellow cargo vessel, the Bahamas-flagged Polesie, carrying 22 people. The P&O cruise full of holidaymakers was among the ships in the vicinity that joined the search.

The Iona joined the search effort for the missing Verity crew (PA)

There were reports that three people were pulled from the water and onto the cruise liner itself. Also in the rescue mission were the vessels 'Hermann Marwede' and 'Bernhard Gruben'. The Iona has a doctor and medical assistance on board while paramedics are also available for on board rescue helicopters. It eventually was able to continue on to scheduled stops in Rotterdam and Bruges.

The unnamed Iona passenger went on to tell the Mirror reports of mass panic on board the cruise are not true and they praised the response of the staff during the harrowing search. They said: "They [P&O) have been superb and the crew have worked tirelessly to make our cruise amazing and safe during some very difficult situations.

The Polesie ship was able to stagger back to harbour after the crash (NEWS5/AFP via Getty Images)

"The captain has again been superb and calm when again behind the scenes they must have been going through some very difficult scenarios. During the search and rescue, staff were ever present and those on the boat made sure outside areas were out of bounds due to possible helicopter landings. The conditions the crew members encountered who were off ship in smaller rescue vessels can’t have been pleasant."

They added: "The captain and crew kept us safe and did their utmost to keep the situation calm and orderly." The Sun reported emergency services faced brutal 30mph winds, 10ft waves as well as fog as they hunted for the missing people in temperatures as low as 11C.

Ryan Merrifield