Thames pleasure cruiser hits wall at Canary Wharf

A Thames pleasure cruiser with 151 people on board crashed into a wall in Canary Wharf on Sunday September 11th after catching fire while out on the river.

The London Fire Brigade confirmed that there were 142 passengers and six crew on the vessel who were evacuated to the waterfront and by other boats, while three crew remained on board. There are no reports of injuries, the Brigade said.

Video footage showed the out-of-control vessel narrowly missing a pier before ploughing into the bank, which brought it to a shuddering halt. Police said emergency services were called to reports of a fire in the engine of the boat shortly before 4pm. The fire in the engine room was extinguished before firefighters arrived.

A spokesman for the London Ambulance Service said three people were checked over at the scene but none suffered injuries.

A spokesman for the Port of London Authority confirmed that both of the boat’s engines had failed, forcing the ship’s master to drop his anchor.