Updated Monday, February 27, 2012, 7pm EST
A fire broke out this morning in Costa Allegra's aft electric generator room while the ship was sailing about 200 miles southwest of the Seychelles and about 20 miles from Alphonse Island.
A general alarm was sounded, and passengers and crew members went to their muster stations.
The shipboard fire suppression systems were activated, and the ship's special firefighting squads extinguished the blaze. The fire was contained to the generator room.
There were no injuries to passengers or crew.
The ship is currently without power, and inspections are underway to determine damage and if the generators can be restarted. The ship sent a distress signal, and all relevant authorities were notified. The Maritime Rescue Control Center in Rome is following the situation and ready to provide any necessary support.
Several vessels are headed toward Costa Allegra to provide assistance. The nearest was a French oceangoing fishing vessel which arrived Monday night. The captains of the two vessels have been in radio contact, and at dawn they will decide what assistance the fishing vessel can be to Costa Allegra.
There are 636 passengers aboard the 28,597-ton Costa Allegra along with 413 crew members.
Costa Allegra left Diego Suarez on Saturday (February 25, 2012) on a cruise to Seychelles. Its first port of call was scheduled for Tuesday at Victoria (Mahe, Seychelles)
