1 crew member dies after fire on S'pore-bound World Legacy cruise, all 271 passengers safe

Update as of Feb. 20, 4:17pm: The article earlier reported a total of 224 passengers. This was based on preliminary information provided to MPA at the time of the incident. The article has been updated with the total of 271 pasengers.

A crew member has died after a fire broke out onboard the Liberia-registered passenger vessel World Legacy while it was en route to Singapore in the early hours of Feb. 20.

The incident

The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) said it was alerted to the incident at about 4am.

The blaze was brought under control shortly after by the ship’s crew, according to the authorities.

Following the incident, the vessel was reported to be in a stable condition and anchored at Raffles Reserved Anchorage.

MPA patrol craft, officers from the Police Coast Guard and the Singapore Civil Defence Force’s (SCDF) Marine Division were deployed to attend to the vessel.

One crew member dead

There were 388 crew members onboard at the time of the fire, none of whom are Singaporean.

One crew member was reported dead.

The ship was also carrying 271 passengers, including 139 Singaporeans.

No other injuries were reported among passengers or crew members.

Ship had faced operational complaints in earlier sailings

World Legacy recently made headlines over service and facility issues during its December 2025 sailings.

Passengers cited concerns including brown-coloured tap water, power and water disruptions, non-operational lifts, incorrect onboard time displays and limited food options.

Some guests also reported that only one of three restaurants was operating and that entertainment facilities were not fully ready at the time.

A spokesperson for the cruise operator had said then that the ship was in a “testing phase” and that the issues were being addressed.

Top images via worldlegacybyworldcruises/Facebook