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Scandinavian Star ferry fire (1990)

ONGOING1990Skagerrak strait, en route from Oslo, Norway to Frederikshavn, Denmark3 SOURCESUPDATED JUL 2026
Illustrative

The fire

MS Scandinavian Star, a car and passenger ferry built in France in 1971, caught fire at about 02:00 on 7 April 1990 while operating the Oslo, Norway–Frederikshavn, Denmark route for the shipping line DA-NO Linjen. The ferry was carrying 395 passengers and 97 crew. Recently converted from a casino ship, it had a crew trained in only ten days rather than the six to eight weeks considered reasonable, and many crew members did not speak English, Norwegian, or Danish. An insurance inspector had already found the ship's fire preparedness deficient, citing defective fire doors among other problems. Once discovered, the fire spread rapidly from deck 3 through decks 4 and 5; stairwells acted as chimneys, and burning melamine wall panels released toxic hydrogen cyanide and carbon monoxide. Fire doors failed to close automatically, and ventilation fans meant to clear exhaust fumes instead helped draw the fire upward. The captain activated the general alarm, ordered the ship abandoned, and sent a Mayday call, but he and the crew left before all passengers had been evacuated. The vessel was towed to Lysekil, Sweden, where firefighters extinguished the blaze after about ten hours. At least 158 people died aboard the ship, and another died of injuries roughly two weeks later, bringing the toll to 159; 136 of those killed were Norwegian. More than 100 forensic specialists worked to identify the severely burned remains. The ship had a history of undisclosed fires, including two in 1988, one of which knocked out its power and emergency oxygen system.

A disputed investigation

An Oslo police investigation initially attributed the fire to Erik Mørk Andersen, a Danish truck driver with three prior arson convictions who died in the blaze. That conclusion has since been disputed. A 2009 review found evidence of several separate fires that would have required more than one person to set, and a 2013 report by an independent Norwegian research group alleged that as many as nine crew members deliberately started six fires, potentially for insurance fraud, though that report was itself controversial and unproven. In 2014, Norwegian authorities officially reopened the investigation and dropped the case against Andersen. In March 2015, Norway's Parliament removed the statute of limitations for arson so that prosecution would remain possible, and in February 2016 the Danish investigator who had led the original 1990 inquiry stated publicly that he believed the fire had been sabotage carried out by members of the crew.

Continuing scrutiny

In 2020, a six-hour Nordic television documentary revisited the case, presenting further allegations that at least four separate fires had been deliberately set and that Andersen bore no responsibility for any of them. The documentary prompted a majority of the Danish parliament to vote for a government hearing into the disaster later that year. No one has ever been convicted in connection with the fire, and its cause remains officially unresolved. The disaster also led international maritime regulators to comprehensively amend passenger-ship fire-safety rules in 1992.

Key facts

Victims
On file
Date
1990
Location
Skagerrak strait, en route from Oslo, Norway to Frederikshavn, Denmark
Case status
ongoing

Case timeline

  1. 1971

    MS Massalia, later renamed Scandinavian Star, was built in France and delivered to Compagnie de Paquebots.

  2. 1985

    An unreported fire caused by a deep-fryer occurred aboard the ship.

  3. 1988

    An unreported fire caused by a broken lubricating pipe occurred aboard the ship, the first of two fires that year.

  4. 1988-03-15

    A second fire that year started in the engine room about 50 nautical miles northeast of Cancún while the ship carried 439 passengers and 268 crew; the vessel lost its power supply and emergency oxygen system, hampering firefighting efforts.

  5. 1990-04-07

    A fire broke out aboard Scandinavian Star at about 02:00 while the ferry, carrying 395 passengers and 97 crew, was on the Oslo–Frederikshavn route for DA-NO Linjen; it spread rapidly through decks 3 to 5, fed in part by toxic gases from burning melamine wall panels.

  6. 1990-04-07

    The captain ordered the general alarm and told everyone to abandon ship; he and the crew left before all passengers had been evacuated. The vessel was towed to Lysekil, Sweden, where firefighters extinguished the blaze after about ten hours. At least 158 people died in the fire and one more died of injuries roughly two weeks later.

  7. 1992

    The International Maritime Organization comprehensively amended the International Code for Fire Safety Systems following the disaster.

  8. 2006-04-07

    A memorial to the victims was inaugurated in Oslo, near Akershus Fortress.

  9. 2009

    A new investigation determined that the fire had actually consisted of several separate fires and that multiple people would have been needed to set them.

  10. 2013

    A report by a self-appointed Norwegian research group disputed that Erik Mørk Andersen was responsible and alleged that as many as nine crew members had deliberately set six separate fires, motivated by insurance fraud; the report was controversial and unproven.

  11. 2014

    Norwegian authorities officially reopened the investigation and dropped the case against the deceased suspect Erik Mørk Andersen.

  12. 2015-03

    The Parliament of Norway removed the statute of limitations for arson, keeping criminal investigation and prosecution of the case possible.

  13. 2016-02

    Retired Danish investigator Flemming Thue Jensen, who had led the 1990 post-fire investigation, said publicly that he believed the fire had been sabotage set by members of the ship's crew.

  14. 2020

    Danish, Norwegian, and Swedish broadcasters aired a six-hour documentary presenting new allegations that at least four separate fires had been deliberately set and that Andersen had not started any of them.

  15. 2020-05-09

    A majority of the Danish parliament voted to initiate a government hearing into the case following the documentary.

  16. 2021-05-13

    A permanent memorial to the fire's victims was unveiled in Lysekil, Sweden.

Best coverage

No approved coverage links are attached yet.

People

  • Erik Mørk Andersen

    CHARGED

    Danish truck driver with three prior arson convictions; the original 1990 investigation attributed the Scandinavian Star fire to him, and he died in the blaze. The case against him was reopened and the charges were dropped in 2014 after later reviews found the fire likely involved more than one person.

  • Flemming Thue Jensen

    LAW ENFORCEMENT

    Danish investigator who led the official post-fire investigation launched in 1990; in February 2016, after retiring, he said publicly that he believed the fire had been sabotage set by members of the ship's crew.

Roles reflect public records and court outcomes at the time of writing — supporting citations are on file under Sources.

Places

Skagerrak strait, en route from Oslo, Norway to Frederikshavn, Denmark

58.5667, 10.5667

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Common questions

What happened to the victim?
A fire aboard the car ferry MS Scandinavian Star killed 159 people during an overnight crossing between Oslo, Norway, and Frederikshavn, Denmark, on 7 April 1990. The original investigation blamed a truck driver who died in the blaze, but that finding was disputed and the case was officially reopened in 2014 with the fire's cause still unresolved.
Where did the crime happen?
Skagerrak strait, en route from Oslo, Norway to Frederikshavn, Denmark.
What is the current status of the case?
Status: ongoing.
More cases in Norway

Sources

  1. ENCYCLOPEDICMS Scandinavian StarWikipedia · 2026-07-12
  2. PRESSContemporaneous coverage — Associated PressAssociated Press · 2026-07-12
  3. PRESSContemporaneous coverage — The New York TimesThe New York Times · 2026-07-12

Record history

First published
JUL 13, 2026