Passengers Airlifted from cruise ship stranded off Norway
Rescue helicopters were evacuating people from a cruise ship which suffered engine failure on Saturday, in the stormy weather off the West Coast of Norway, police and rescue workers said. The maritime rescue service said the Viking Sky, with about 1,300 passengers and crew on board, had sent out a mayday signal as it had been drifting towards land. The crew were later able to restart one engine and the ship was at anchor just over a mile from land. Passengers were hoisted one-by-one from the deck of the vessel and airlifted to a village just north of the town of Molde on Norway's west coast. About one-hundred people had been evacuated by 3:30 p.m. GMT, police said.
Viking Cruises said in a statement Saturday that the Viking Sky was carrying 915 guests and 458 crew when it lost engine power. "Our first priority was for the safety and wellbeing of our passengers and our crew, and in close cooperation with the Norwegian Coast Guard, the captain decided to evacuate all guests from the vessel by helicopter," the company's statement said. "The evacuation is proceeding with all necessary caution. A small number of non-life threatening injuries have been reported. Guests are being accommodated in local hotels when they arrive back on shore, and Viking will arrange for return flights, for all guests."
The waves were 20 to 26 feet high, with wind blowing at 79 feet per second, according to the Norwegian Meteorological Institute.
Link:https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/passengers-airlifted-cruise-ship-stranded-norway-n986616https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/passengers-airlifted-cruise-ship-stranded-norway-n986616
Viking Cruises said in a statement Saturday that the Viking Sky was carrying 915 guests and 458 crew when it lost engine power. "Our first priority was for the safety and wellbeing of our passengers and our crew, and in close cooperation with the Norwegian Coast Guard, the captain decided to evacuate all guests from the vessel by helicopter," the company's statement said. "The evacuation is proceeding with all necessary caution. A small number of non-life threatening injuries have been reported. Guests are being accommodated in local hotels when they arrive back on shore, and Viking will arrange for return flights, for all guests."
The waves were 20 to 26 feet high, with wind blowing at 79 feet per second, according to the Norwegian Meteorological Institute.
Link:https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/passengers-airlifted-cruise-ship-stranded-norway-n986616https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/passengers-airlifted-cruise-ship-stranded-norway-n986616
This is very scary and I can't imagine how terrified the passengers must have been. I hope that this causes future protocols to be more strict and adds some additional safety measures to cruise ships.
ReplyDeleteGlad this ended better than the Titanic
ReplyDelete