A Costa Cruises ship, the Costa Allegra, is adrift in the Indian Ocean after a fire on board the cruise liner.

Belonging to the same company that owned the ill-fated Costa Concordia, the blaze on the Costa Allegra started in the electric generators room at about 10.30am. The ship has been left without any electricity, the BBC reports.

The fire has been extinguished and although there were more than 1,000 passengers on board, no one was injured. However the Italian coastguard has said that the ship's engines have been damaged and the Costa Allegra has no means of propelling itself.

All passengers and crew members not engaged in the running of the ship have been sent to muster points "as a general precaution", the cruise company said.

At the moment, the Costa Allegra is around 20 miles from Alphonse Island. The ship, which is twenty years old, was due to reach the port of Victoria in the Seychelles tomorrow, the 28 February.

However now the cruise-liner is to be approached by "tugs and other naval and aerial units" after the Costa Allegra sent out a distress signal.

The Costa Concordia, another ship that belonged to Costa Cruises, killed 25 people when it ran aground off the island of Giglio, Italy on 13 January. Seven people are still missing.