Engineers assess Navy ship damage

HMS Endurance is currently on patrol in the Antarctic and South Atlantic

Engineers are assessing damage to a Portsmouth-based Royal Navy ship, which lost power when the engine room was flooded while off the coast of Chile.

Ten people had to be rescued when HMS Endurance was left without main power and propulsion last month.

It has been towed to the Falkland Islands for inspection and a decision will be made in the next few days to repair it or tow it back to the UK.

The navy has ruled out a collision or grounding as the cause of the flood.

There is also no damage to the hull of the 6,000 tonne ice-breaker.

Flown home

Engineers are looking at the possibility that a faulty sea water valve may have been to blame.

A Royal Navy spokesman said the salt water had caused major damage to the engine.

The cause of the incident is still being investigated.

Sources in the salvage industry told the BBC the bill for towing the ship back could run into hundreds of thousands of pounds.

The passengers on HMS Endurance at the time of the problem, who were from the British Schools Exploring Society, were taken off by a Chilean Navy puma helicopter as a precaution.

Most of the ship's crew have since been flown home.

The ship's mission is to patrol and survey the Antarctic and South Atlantic, where it spends seven months of the year.