A cruise ship sailing through the Canary Islands and the North Atlantic experienced real moments of terror when it was surprised by a violent storm that forced the captain to make a sudden safety maneuver, change course and seek refuge in a port in Portsmouth, Great Britain. .
The luxurious boat, which was carrying 1,000 tourists, suffered significant damage and more than 100 passengers were injured, five of them seriously. The Spirit of Discovery was battered by 10-meter waves in the Bay of Biscay, in the western part of Europe, off France.
As a result of a maneuver carried out by the captain, the ship's propulsion system was activated, the ship tilted to one side and generated panic among the passengers.
Spirit of Discovery was on a 14-night sailing itinerary that had begun on October 24. On the tenth day of the trip, given the worsening weather conditions, the decision was made to cancel Las Palmas and head directly to La Coruña to anticipate an approaching storm, as reported by the Saga Cruises company.
While en route to La Coruña, the Captain received information that the port would be closed due to adverse weather conditions. Consequently, he made the decision to return to the UK earlier than originally planned, in an effort to get ahead of the storm.
In a statement, Nigel Blanks, CEO of Saga Cruises, said: “The ship remained safe at all times, but due to the impact of the storm some passengers suffered injuries. “They were all immediately treated by the medical staff on board.”
“While the weather is clearly out of our control, we want to offer our sincerest apologies to all those affected who are now safely back home in calmer seas,” he concluded.
While en route to La Coruña, the Captain received information that the port would be closed due to adverse weather conditions. Consequently, he made the decision to return to the UK earlier than originally planned, in an effort to get ahead of the storm.
One passenger said some of those on board feared for their lives. “To say ‘minor injuries’ is an insult to the horrible broken bones, pelvis, lacerations, sutures that the passengers suffered,” he added.
Jan Bendall, 75, who was on the cruise with her husband, said they were in their cabin when the captain's voice came over the public address system and told them to “stay seated or get down on the floor.” She said that after the ship stopped, she stood still for about 15 hours while “stuck in the middle of the storm,” during which she and her husband “clung on for dear life.” “It was pretty scary,” she said. “I'm not someone who scares easily... it was quite dramatic,” they told the British network BBC.
Others wrote goodbye messages to their families and did not take off their life jackets for two days. One said: "The whole experience was horrible. The waves reached up to the fifth floor windows, people were screaming and furniture, plates and glass were flying in all directions," commented one of those affected.
"I'm ex-military and fire service and have dealt with many traumatic experiences in my career, but this one is right up there with the worst. People were screaming for their lives, things were banging and crashing around us and they thought they were going to die." "said another traveler.
"We were locked in the cabins for two days, lying in bed, fully dressed and with life jackets on. I know other passengers wrote notes on their phones to their loved ones because they didn't think they were going to get out of there."
