Grimaldi fleet hit by sixth fire since 2019

A conro Grande Brasile caught fire in the English Channel yesterday, adding to a series of five similar incidents on ships operated by Italy’s Grimaldi Group over the past few years.

The 2000-built 26,200 dwt vessel issued a distress call while transiting the Dover Strait, about 15 nautical miles off the coast of Ramsgate, UK.

Rescue teams from the UK, the Netherlands, and France were tasked to the scene, including a fixed-wing aircraft, a vessel with firefighting and towing capability and lifeboats.

No injuries have been reported, and the fire, which was reported at 09.35 hrs local time, has been contained by onboard fire suppression systems.

The 214-m-long, 1,300 teu Grande Brasile was on its way from Antwerp to Le Havre and is understood to be laden with containers and cars.

“As a result of this casualty, cargo deliveries will likely be delayed, with significant cargo loss and damage,” W.E. Cox Claims Group said in a note.

The ship, covered by Britannia P&I Club, is owned and managed by Grimaldi’s ACL Atlantic Container Line in Sweden and operated by the group on its West Africa and Northern Europe trades.

The latest incident follows a deadly blaze the Grimaldi Group-controlled conro Grande Costa D’Avorio suffered at the Port of Newark in New Jersey in 2023.

In March 2019, Grimaldi’s conro Grande America caught fire and sank off the western coast of France while sailing from Hamburg to Casablanca in Morocco. In 2022, the company’s roro Euroferry Olympia carrying more than 290 passengers and crew was involved in a deadly fire off Corfu, Greece while on its towards Brindisi in Italy.

Adding to this list are fires on ropax Cruise Bonaria in 2020 and car carrier Grande Europa in 2019.