Portsmouth fire: Blaze on boat sparks Mayday call as black smoke billows in sky

A huge blaze on a boat has sparked an emergency operation off the coast of Portsmouth.

The coastguard received a mayday call at around 3.20pm after a fire broke out in the 38ft vessel's engine room.

Two people on board were evacuated and are both understood to be uninjured.

Lifeboat teams found the boat to be well-alight and, for safety reasons, did not attempt to extinguish the flames.

The fire tug is now attending and nearby vessels have been warned to stay clear, said the Maritime and Coastguard Agency.

A spokesperson for the government agency said: “At approx. 3.20pm today, HM Coastguard received a MAYDAY alert reporting a fire in the engine room of a vessel with two people on board in the East Solent.

Black smoke was captured billowing from a vessel in pictures posted to social media this afternoon (@Ahsan_Amin / Twitter)

"Bembridge and Gosport lifeboats were sent and both people were evacuated from the vessel and the vessel was towed to an anchorage.

"Both Hampshire Fire and Rescue as well as the Isle of Wight Fire and Rescue Service are attending and a fire tug is proceeding, while all vessels have been advised to stay clear.”

An RNLI spokeswoman added: "Bembridge RNLI have responded to incident this afternoon on the Solent. The All-Weather lifeboat was launched to reports of a 38ft vessel on fire with two people onboard.

"First on scene was Gosport & Fareham Inshore Rescue Service (GAFIRS). The Independent lifeboat crew safely recovered the two casualties off the vessel and established a towline onto it.

The fire tug is now attending and nearby vessels have been warned to stay clear (@cgzwolfman / Twitter)

Two people on board were evacuated and are both understood to be uninjured (@cgzwolfman / Twitter)

"Once on scene, Bembridge RNLI took over the tow and anchored the burning vessel. The two people have been taken ashore by Bembridge lifeboat crew and are recovering after the incident.

"The Queen’s Harbour Master from Portsmouth has dispatched a tug who are attempting to put out the fire."

Black smoke was captured billowing from the vessel in pictures posted to social media this afternoon. One eyewitness wrote: "Big fire and smoke coming from a boat off Mulberry Harbour."

Another posted: "Boat fire off Eastney. Looks like @outonashout @RNLI are on the scene", while a third added: "Boat on fire in the Solent #Southsea #Portsmouth".

The Mirror has contacted Hampshire Constabulary for comment.