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Friday November 23rd, 2007 - The Explorer (formerly
the Lindblad Explorer) on charter to G.A.P. Adventures of Toronto a
Canadian Tour company, struck an iceberg which punctured it's
hull near the
 South
Shetland Islands.
All 154 crew and
passengers took to lifeboats and where subsequently rescued by a
Norwegian Cruise Ship without death or injury.
The entire vessel finally slipped beneath the waves Friday evening,
about 20 hours after the predawn accident.
No injuries were reported although passengers reportedly endured
subfreezing temperatures for several hours in the ships lifeboats.
The Norwegian liner took them to a Chilean military base in the
region.
A spokesperson for G.A.P. Adventures of Toronto said, "The ship ran
into some ice. It was submerged ice and the result was a hole about
the size of a fist in the side of the hull so it began taking on
water, The passengers are absolutely fine. They're all accounted
for, no injuries whatsoever."
Chilean naval aircraft monitored the situation throughout the day
and aerial photographs showed the ship listing heavily, its white
superstructure and red hull starkly visible against the gray, choppy
waters and overcast skies. The navy eventually lost sight of the
ship and wreckage indicated it had gone under completely, according
to a navy press officer who declined be identified in accordance
with department policy. "Our units in the area aren't seeing
anything - the Explorer
is not visible any longer."
In all 91 passengers had been aboard, including at least 23 Britons,
17 Dutch, 13 Americans and 10 Canadians. The ship also carried nine
expedition staff members and a crew of 54. The group calmly
abandoned ship when the captain's order came and pumps helped keep
the ship stable for an orderly evacuation.
Captain Arnvid Hansen, of the Norwegian liner Nordnorge, said his
ship ferried the passengers and crew to a Chilean air force base on
King George Island in Antarctic waters near southernmost South
America. "The rescue operation ran very smoothly," the Captain
was reported as saying.
G.A.P Adventures is a tour company that provides excursions with an
environmental focus.
 The
Explorer was on a 19-day circuit of Antarctica and the Falkland
Islands letting passengers observe penguins, whales and other
wildlife while getting briefings from experts on the region.
The
G.A.P. Adventures of Toronto spokesperson said "Traveling to
Antarctica is always risky, there is ice in the area. Obviously it's
a hazard of the area. But it's highly unusual (that the ship would
hit the ice). This has never happened to us."
An Argentine rescue
and command center received the first distress call at 12:30 a.m.
EST Friday from the Explorer amid reports it was taking on water
despite efforts to use onboard pumps, said Capt. Juan Pablo
Panichini, an Argentine navy spokesman.
A navy statement said that the captain ordered passengers to abandon
ship about 90 minutes after the first call and that passengers and
crew boarded eight semi-rigid lifeboats and four life rafts, with
the captain leaving the ship later.
A Chilean ornithologist identified as Paola Palavecino was quoted in
an Argentine media report as saying she and others aboard went into
the lifeboats before dawn and endured subfreezing temperatures for a
few hours until they were picked up about 6 a.m. EST.
"The ship took on water quickly," she was quoted by the Argentine
news agency Diarios y Noticias as telling a local radio station in a
call from the Nordnorge.
A commander at Chile's air base on King George island confirmed late
Friday that the Nordnorge had arrived in a bay near the base, but
said waves and strong winds had prevented the passengers from
immediately disembarking.
He said Chilean air force planes, weather permitting, would fly the
survivors on Saturday to Punta Arenas at the southernmost tip of
Chile.
An Argentine navy statement said the Explorer was about 475 nautical
miles southeast of Ushuaia, the southernmost Argentine city and a
jumping-off point for cruise ships and supply vessels for
Antarctica. Seas were calm and winds light at the time of the
accident, officials said. |
