Fire breaks out on historic Hamburg sailing ship

A fire broke out on board the historic sailing ship Mare Frisium in the German port city of Hamburg, authorities said early on Thursday.

Thick black smoke rose from the wheelhouse of the 50-metre, three-masted vessel moored near Hamburg's Elbphilharmonie concert hall, the fire department said.

Emergency crews, alerted shortly after midnight, extinguished the flames from the shore. Fireboats that had been dispatched were not needed. No injuries were reported, and the extent of the damage was initially unclear.

At the time of the fire, the more than 100-year-old museum ship, now primarily used as an event venue, had no one on board. The cause of the blaze was unknown, though officials suspected a technical fault, such as an electrical fire.