Princess Cruises reports that on July 12th at approximately 8:00 PM, the Island Princess , en route from Venice to Istanbul, received a distress call from the Greek Rescue Coordination Center (RCC) requesting a change of course to assist a vessel. The Island Princess arrived at the scene and found a 25-meter boat moving at 5 knots without apparent difficulty, carrying 117 Syrian nationals, including men, women, and children (92 adults and 25 children).
The Greek RCC requested that the Island Princess remain on scene and await the arrival of a Greek Navy vessel. At approximately 1:45 AM local time, the vessel began experiencing difficulties due to the winds, and its stability was compromised. The Island Princess crew immediately launched rescue boats and life jackets and prepared to transfer the Syrian nationals from the distressed vessel onto the Island Princess. Thanks to the arrival of the Navy vessel, they were safely transferred to the ship. After the transfer was completed, the onboard medical team conducted health assessments of the 117 people, and they were provided with food and drinks. The Island Princess then proceeded to the port of Katakolon (approximately 4.5 hours from the rescue site), located on the western coast of southern Greece. The ship arrived at approximately 10:00 AM local time.
Since this rescue operation took place overnight, guests on board the Island Princess were informed by the captain via public address system at 7:00 a.m. on the ship.
The Island Princess is currently sailing with 2,197 passengers on a 12-day Mediterranean cruise that began in Venice on July 9. The itinerary has been affected, and the planned stop in Istanbul, Turkey, on July 13 has been canceled. The cruise will now end in Barcelona on July 21.
Help ships in distress:
When a vessel is seen or reports being in distress in the vicinity of one of our ships, it is our duty to provide assistance. The captain and senior officers must determine the best course of action in coordination with local authorities. We consider it our moral responsibility to assist any vessel in distress. In the last 10 years, our crew and ships have participated in more than 30 vessel distress rescues.
