Le Boreal

Design and description

The vessel is 142 m in length, has 132 cabins and suites for 264 passengers and 136 crew members.

Construction and career

Completed in 2010, she is a sister vessel of , and . Le Boreal entered service on 6 May 2010.

Between 25 February and 6 March 2018, video journalist and podcaster Brady Haran conducted an expedition to Antarctica aboard this vessel.

2015 engine room fire

On 18 November 2015 Le Boreal suffered a major engine room fire which caused the loss of all power and left her drifting. The captain ordered the ship, with 347 passengers and crew, to be abandoned early in the morning. A distress call was issued just after 2 a.m. while it was near Cape Dolphin, the northerly point of East Falkland, Falkland Islands. The news agency reported that 90 of the ship's 347 passengers and crew were air-lifted to safety from life rafts. The sister ship L'Austral responded to the distress call and took on some passengers.

Working closely with the Falkland Islands Government, British forces enacted a major search and rescue plan. Two Sea King Royal Air Force Search and Rescue helicopters were scrambled, along with two other support helicopters, a C-130 Hercules and a Voyager aircraft for command and control. The Royal Navy patrol vessel was dispatched to the scene, as were two Dutch tugs which support British forces in the Falkland Islands. Subsequently, all passengers and crew from Le Boreal were accounted for and being looked after on the Falkland Islands. The vessel was later reported in a stable condition and the tugs were assisting to bring her alongside in the Falkland Islands for a detailed assessment of her condition. In March 2016, Ponant confirmed that Le Boreal would resume service in May. The investigators' report was released in July 2016, and attributed the fire to a ship's officer's misidentification of a clogged fuel filter; the report noted that the officer did not have a mechanic's rating, and Ponant subsequently changed several work rules in response to the report.

In popular culture

Le Boreal was featured in episode three of the fifth season of the TV series Mighty Ships. The ship was shown taking tourists to South Georgia and the Antarctic Peninsula.

References

Notes

Bibliography

References

1. "VeriStarInfo 2013 / ''LE BOREAL'' 2013".
2. (8 October 2009). "Le Boreal Launched In Ancona Super Luxury Ship for Compagnie Du Ponant". [[expeditioncruising.com]].
3. "Antarctica Intro".
4. (19 November 2015). "Engine Room Fire Forces Boreal Evacuation – Cruise Industry News | Cruise News". Cruise Industry News.
5. (18 November 2015). "Fire on Ponant Cruise Ship L'Boreal Causes Evacuation – Ponant". Cruise Critic.
6. (19 November 2015). "British Forces go to assistance of stricken cruise liner in the Falklands – News stories".
7. (10 March 2016). "Ponant Cruise Ship Le Boreal to Resume Sailing in May". Cruise Critic.
8. Stieghorst, Tom. (21 July 2016). "Report identifies cause of Le Boreal cruise ship fire". [[USA Today]].