ALL passengers and crew on board Viking Cruises’ Viking Sky are safe, following a weekend of high drama which saw them airlifted from the vessel off the coast of western Norway. The company’s founder and CEO, Torstein Hagen, has flown to the remote Norwegian village of Molde to personally comfort...
ALL passengers and crew on board Viking Cruises’ Viking Sky are safe, following a weekend of high drama which saw them airlifted from the vessel off the coast of western Norway.
The company’s founder and CEO, Torstein Hagen, has flown to the remote Norwegian village of Molde to personally comfort the passengers after the rescue, which took more than 15 hours.
At least four helicopters were mobilised to airlift those on board to shore, after the ship’s engines failed during high seas and it began drifting towards the land.
“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,” according to an official statement from Viking.
The “brutal conditions” forced two Norwegian Society for Sea Rescue vessels to turn back, while air evacuations were also undertaken for a nearby cargo ship which was also in trouble.
Viking Sky was just over half way through its current “In Search of the Northern Lights” itinerary between Bergen and Tilbury in the UK.
The crew managed to drop the anchor and eventually restart the engines, and the ship has proceeded to safety under its own power with tugboats also in attendance.
Viking said its next sailing, “Scandinavia & the Kiel Canal” which was scheduled to embark on 27 Mar, had been cancelled, with impacted guests and travel agents currently being contacted.
“We do not anticipate any additional cancellations at this time,” the company said.
