Ponant’s 10,944gt/2010 built Le Boréal was transported back to Europe from South America following her serious fire in November. The 264-passenger ship was taken to Punto Arenas, Chile, while the extent of the damage was inspected. The repair work was deemed too complex to complete in South America so, in mid-January, Le Boréal was secured onto the semi-submersible heavy-lift ship Kang Sheng Kou, which had arrived on 9th January, and departed on 20th January bound for Genoa where the ensemble was expected on 15th February. The complex repairs could then get underway and are scheduled for completion in May, ready for the first sailing on 9th May from Lisbon on a 7 night cruise to Dublin.