A search operation has commenced in the following a crew member’s fall overboard from the Viking Star during a cruise on Monday morning.
A Viking Cruises spokesperson verified to Digital that a crew member was observed going overboard at 11:31 a.m. local time. The ship promptly activated its emergency response and initiated a search, coordinating with the .
The spokesperson stated that no additional details were accessible at present.
The eight-day, seven-night Viking ocean cruise started in Athens, Greece, before continuing to Turkey and the Greek island of Crete. On Monday, during the voyage from Crete to Palermo, Sicily, Italy, an announcement was made over the ship’s PA system stating that a crew member had gone overboard.
A producer present on the cruise reported that the announcement visibly startled a waiter serving lunch, causing others to rush to the railings to scan the ocean. Someone was heard to say, “I see someone.”
A crew member was observed throwing an orange life ring into the ocean, followed minutes later by the lowering of a smaller ring with an attached flare into the water. The ship was slowly circling the location where the crew member went overboard while the Italian Coast Guard conducted a .
The cruise director subsequently informed those onboard the ship that the search area had been enlarged.
Details concerning the and the circumstances under which they went overboard remain undefined.
was informed that it seemed the missing crew member was on the second deck when the incident occurred.
The Viking Star is capable of carrying up to 930 passengers and approximately 500 crew members.
Following the stops in Sicily, it is slated to proceed to Naples and ultimately Civitavecchia, a coastal city roughly an hour from Rome.
’s Andrew Fone contributed to this dispatch.