A fire has broken out on a car carrier ship in the English Channel.
The blaze started aboard the US vessel Honour as it was travelling to Baltimore from Southampton.
The ship's cargo space has been sealed and its manoeuvrability has not been affected, a coastguard spokesman said.
He added that it planned to anchor off the Isle of Wight while the fire damage was assessed, to determine whether it was safe for the ship to return to Southampton Port.
CHRIS DOWNER
UK Coastguard commander Andy Jenkins said the ship's 21 crew were "safe and well" and were still onboard the vessel.
Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service has been notified and UK Coastguard said it was monitoring the situation closely.
It added a fire and rescue marine response team was being airlifted onboard to investigate the fire damage.
A pilot from Southampton Port and a Maritime and Coastguard Agency marine casualty officer are also being sent to the vessel.
