Southampton-Isle of Wight ferries disrupted by three separate incidents

Ferry services between Southampton and the Isle of Wight have been disrupted after a fire, a hull fracture and a breakdown affected three separate vessels.

RedJet 7 suffered a mid-Solent breakdown on Tuesday.

Operator Red Funnel said RedJet 6 was taken out of service on Thursday after a "pinhole fracture" was identified.

A fire has since broken out on one of the vehicle ferries which passengers were asked to use as an alternative.

Red Funnel described it as a "small, contained galley fire" on board the 15:00 BST Red Osprey crossing from Southampton. No passengers were injured.

"The vessel has now returned safely to Southampton where our crew is currently assisting passengers with disembarking," the operator added.

It said the emergency services had been called as a "precautionary measure" and added its crew "deployed our emergency protocols, which included the distribution of life vests and instructions to proceed to muster stations".

Hampshire & Isle of Wight Fire & Rescue Service said the fire, involving a chip fan, was dealt with by the ferry's on-board auto suppression system by the time the vessel had docked.

Disruption to sailings was expected to continue through Thursday evening.

The company said it hoped to have RedJet 6 back in service on Friday.

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