Cruise ship carrying 1,600 being evacuated off Greek island
A cruise ship carrying nearly 1,200 passengers and some 400 crew was being evacuated off the Greek island of Santorini today, after issuing a distress signal, authorities said.
The Greek-flagged Sea Diamond apparently had hit rocks and was listing near the island’s main port, the Merchant Marine Ministry said.
The ministry said about 650 people had already been safely evacuated. More than a dozen ships were involved in the rescue effort.
Six navy rescue helicopters, two military transport plane and four warships also were been sent to the area, along with emergency medical crews.
Hundreds of people could be seen on the deck of the ship waiting to be rescued, witnesses said.
Thousands of tourists and residents watched the rescue effort from the island’s cliffs and port.
Santorini is a volcanic island and the ship struck a reef inside the lake-like lagoon created inside its caldera.
“We managed to get the ship away from the rocks and tugged the vessel toward the main harbour,” Santorini’s regional governor Chrysanthos Roussis said.
“The condition appears to have been stabilised, and the evacuation effort is going well so far,” Roussis said.
