Fire on Brooklyn Ferry Forces Evacuation

NEW YORK (AP) -- A fire on a Brooklyn ferry forced the evacuation of eight passengers and four crew members Monday morning, but there were no injuries, the Coast Guard said.

The rescue comes less than a week after 10 people died and more than 60 other passengers were injured when a Staten Island ferry careened into a pier.

The Brooklyn passengers and crew were transferred to Fire Department and Coast Guard vessels after the fire broke out on the Sea Streak Liberty at 9:25 a.m., according to Chief Dave French, a Coast Guard spokesman.

The ferry can carry about 300 passengers and travels between Brooklyn and Manhattan. It was not immediately clear which way it was heading when the fire erupted in the ferry's stacks, which are like the exhaust system for the engines.