Update on Star Princess Fire

Princess Cruises said that although no definitive cause of the fire on Star Princess last month has been determined, the fire did start on one of the ship's balconies, and spread to other balconies. The line said the fire was an isolated incident, the first on any balcony for the line, and that it has been safely operating ships with large numbers of balconies for more than 10 years. Nevertheless, Princess said that after the fire it put new procedures in place to prevent a future occurrence; those included a 24-hour fire watch of the balconies, new crew training and fire response procedures in handling balcony fires, improved communications with passengers about fire safety, and revamped crew housekeeping procedures on balconies. Princess said it is moving to provide long-term and permanent measures to improve fire safety on balconies that will adhere to any requirements of regulatory agencies in both the United Kingdom and the United States.