Being a roll-on-roll-off ferry, the Herald had doors at both the bow and stern. In the early evening of March 6, 1987 she capsized shortly after leaving the Belgian port of Bruges-Zeebrugge en route to Dover, England. The ship sailed at 6:05pm British time with a crew of 80 and carrying 459 passengers, 81 cars, 3 buses, and 47 trucks.