The Government of Saint Lucia has offered its condolences to the passengers of the Oceania vessel, Insignia, after three crew members died in a fire that started in the engine room of the ship, last Thursday.

Minister for Tourism, Heritage and Creative Industries, Hon. Lorne Theophilus, extended Government’s sympathies to the management, staff, captain and crew of Insignia, and commended the efforts of the emergency response crews who handled the situation.

“It is a sad moment as three lost their lives,” he said. “I wish to offer the greatest support on behalf of the people of Saint Lucia to the victims of the fire. At this juncture, I also wish to commend the response teams for their timely and efficient handling of the incident. Everyone played a vital role.”

Minister Theophilus said the efforts of the response teams were commended by the staff of the vessel Insignia as well as the island’s visitors.

Chief of Port Police and Chairman of the Disaster Management Committee, Kennedy Francis said SLASPA immediately responded to reports from the public about the fire on board the vessel in the Castries port.

“We immediately notified the fire department. They responded with two tenders and a team. We also notified the Director of Maritime who subsequently along with the fire department proceeded to the vessel and engaged the crew there. An assessment was conducted and we made the decision to close access to the port to allow us to respond in an adequate and safe manner.”

Insignia was on a 10-day cruise that departed San Juan, Puerto Rico on Dec. 7, and was scheduled to arrive in Miami on Dec. 17. The ship was carrying 650 passengers and 400 crew members. It had arrived in port Castries earlier in the day from Barbados, with Saint Vincent as its next port of call.

It is unclear what caused the fire, which began in the engine room and was contained.