Cruise ship Carnival Splendour got stranded offshore when a fire that started in the engine room resulted in the power supply getting switched off.

Matters were saved from getting out of hand on the ship that carried 3,299 passengers, apart from 1,167 crew members. There were no cases of injuries or casualties in the incident. The US coastguard and spokesperson for Carnival Cruise Lines, the operator of Carnival Splendour, confirmed that the ship was being towed to safety and was near to a Mexican port. It will arrive only after Wednesday night.

The fire reportedly broke out on Monday morning when the luxury ship was south of San Diego in California. Miami-based operator Carnival Cruise Lines said that a snag had hit the air conditioning of the ship, and also the telephone service. However the auxiliary power systems tried to reduce passenger discomfort as much as possible.

The coastguard swung into action and the naval forces of the US and Mexico aided their efforts to rescue the ship. Special aircraft and ships were deployed to bail out the stricken vessel that had drifted off 55 miles from the coast of the northern fringe of Baja.

It is being expected that 2 Mexican seagoing tugboats that sailed in a rescue venture from the port of Ensenada, will escort the ship to safety by tomorrow.

Passengers will be ferried by buses with a California destination, said a spokeswoman for Carnival Cruise Lines ,Joyce Oliva. Guests will be compensated for the ordeal.

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