Leaking diesel fuel caused the engine fire that crippled the Carnival Triumph cruise ship for five days in the Gulf of Mexico, stranding more than 4,200 passengers amid sewage, garbage and little food, the Coast Guard said Monday.
The fuel leaked from the return line of the No. 6 engine and ignited when it hit an unspecified hot surface, Lt. Cmdr. Teresa Hatfield said during a telephone news briefing.
The fire was contained to a small area and the crew extinguished the blaze "immediately," said Hatfield, who leads the Coast Guard's Marine Casualty Investigation Team, which is based in New Orleans.
