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Nature and EnvironmentEurope

Stranded cruise ship Ocean Explorer freed off Greenland

September 14, 2023

A luxury vessel that ran aground in a remote corner of Greenland, carrying 206 passengers, has been freed after being stuck for four days. Passengers had spectacular scenery to drink in during their unscheduled stop.

https://p.dw.com/p/4WLKW
The Ocean Explorer in the middle of the cold waters of scenic Greenland
An earlier attempt on Wednesday to free the vessel had failedImage: SIRIUS/Joint Arctic Command/AP Photo/picture alliance

A luxury cruise ship that had been stuck off the coast of Greenland for four days has been freed, the Danish Joint Arctic Command said Thursday.

The Ocean Explorer cruise vessel had been traveling toward Alpefjord, in a remote corner of Greenland, when it ran aground on Monday.

With 206 passengers aboard, the ship was headed to the Northeast Greenland National Park, the world's northernmost national park.

The park, which is located some 1,400 kilometers (around 870 miles) northeast of the country's capital, Nuuk, is nearly the size of France and Spain combined.

Approximately 80% of the park is permanently covered by an ice sheet. Greenland is a semiautonomous territory of Denmark.

The cruise ship stuck in the middle of waters in a remote corner of Greenland
The cruise ship had passengers from Australia, New Zealand, South Korea, the UK and the US Image: SIRIUS/Joint Arctic Command/AP Photo/picture alliance

Operation to rescue cruise ship

The cruise ship was pulled free by a fishing research vessel, the Joint Arctic Command said.

A combination of a pull from that ship, owned by Greenland's government, and the Ocean Explorer's own power freed the cruiseliner, according to the Copanhagen-based SunStone Maritime Group, which owns the Ocean Explorer.

"There have not been any injuries to anybody onboard, no pollution of the environment and no breach of the hull," it said.

One passenger aboard the ship told Reuters news agency that the Ocean Explorer leaned to the side during the operation and they were not allowed to go outside.

The cruise vessel will be taken to a port to assess any damage to it, SunStone said in a press release. 

Australia-based Aurora Expeditions, the agency that organized the tour, said earlier Thursday that three passengers had COVID-19.

"These passengers are currently in isolation. They are looked after by our onboard doctor, medical team and crew, and they are doing well," Aurora Expeditions said in a statement. 

Australian newspaper The Sydney Morning Herald quoted a passenger from Australia, Steven Fraser,  as saying: "Everyone’s in good spirits. It’s a little bit frustrating, but we are in a beautiful part of the world."

rm/msh (Reuters, AP, dpa)