A cruise ship with 1,000 people on board that had drifted for 24 hours after being disabled by a fire was headed toward Malaysia following repairs and was expected to reach shore Sunday, the ship's company said.
The Azamara Quest, which had embarked on a 17-day Southeast Asian cruise, was left drifting in southern Philippine waters after a fire broke out Friday night. The flames engulfed one of the ship's engine rooms but were quickly extinguished, the ship's operator said. Five crew members suffered smoke inhalation, including one who was seriously injured and needed hospital care.
The ship informed the Philippine coast guard late Saturday that its power and propulsion had been restored and that it was moving slowly toward Sandakan, Malaysia, its next destination after it left Manila on Thursday, spokesman Lt. Cmdr. Algier Ricafrente said.
Azamara Club Cruises, the ship's operator, said in a statement Sunday that the ship was sailing at a top speed of only 6 knots (11 kilometers or 6.9 miles per hour) and was expected to reach Sandakan at 10 p.m. (1400 GMT).
``Unfortunately, the ship has not been able to restore power to the air conditioning compressors. While this is a very difficult undertaking, the onboard team is diligently working to resolve this issue. The guest sentiment onboard continues to be calm and upbeat,'' the statement said.
It said company president Larry Pimentel would meet personally with the passengers and crew in Sandakan.
The company said the rest of the cruise would be canceled. It said it would fully refund the passengers and provide each guest with a future cruise certificate for the amount paid for the aborted voyage.
It was the latest in a series of accidents hitting luxury cruise liners since January, when the Costa Concordia capsized off the coast of Italy, killing 32 people.
The Azamara Quest is carrying 590 passengers and 411 crew members. Operator Azamara Club Cruises is part of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.
More than one third, or 201, of the passengers on board are American, and nearly a third, or 119, of the crew are Filipinos, according to lists of passenger and crew nationalities provided by the ship captain to the coast guard.
The passengers are from 25 countries and include 98 from Britain, 89 from Australia, 45 from Canada, 39 from Germany, 32 from Austria, 16 from Belgium, 14 from New Zealand and 14 from Switzerland.
The other crew members include 58 Indians and 50 Indonesians.
The vessel had left Hong Kong on Monday. The ship made a port call in Manila and left for Sandakan on Thursday. It was scheduled to make several stops in Indonesia before arriving in Singapore on April 12.
But instead, the stricken ship drifted Saturday in the Sulu Sea about 130 kilometers (70 nautical miles) south of the Philippines' Tubbataha Reef, Ricafrente said. The area lies between the Philippines and the island of Borneo, which is divided between Malaysia and Indonesia.
A woman from Kailua-Kuna, Hawaii, who said she is one of the passengers, posted an entry on Azamara's Facebook page after Internet service was restored on the ship, praising the crew's handling of the situation.
``No A/C yet but everyone is fine,'' she wrote. ``Cannot say enough about this Captain and the crew. They have been absolutely wonderful keeping us updated constantly with the good or the bad. ... Sorry that we cannot finish our cruise, but we will back ASAP.''
She said the crew worked with very little rest ``to keep us all in good spirits, well fed and comfortable.''
There was a jar where passengers could place donations to help the injured crewman who was in serious condition, she said.
Ricafrente said that no distress call was received and that there would be an investigation.
A Philippine coast guard vessel approached the Azamara Quest, but the ship's captain sent an email to the coast guard saying that it needed no assistance and that everything was ``under control.''
Engineers on Saturday morning restored electricity in the ship to re-establish air conditioning, running water, plumbing, refrigeration and food preparation, the company said.
The ship's senior physician, Oliver Gilles, said the crew member who was in serious condition had suffered ``prolonged heat and smoke exposure.''
A month after 32 people died when the Costa Concordia ran aground and capsized off the western coast of Italy, a fire on the Costra Allegra left that ship without power and adrift in waters known to be prowled by pirates in the Indian Ocean for three days.
Both Costa ships are part of Costa Crociere, SpA, a subsidiary of Carnival Corp., the world's largest cruise operator. (AP)
<관련 한글 기사>
1천명 탄 유람선에 화재, 24시간 표류
항해 중 기관실에 난 화재로 기능을 상실한 초대형 유람선이 수리를 끝내고 현재 말레이지아로 향하고 있다고 한다.
승객과 승무원 등 약 1천명을 태운 몰타 선적의 `아자마라 퀘스트'호는 지난 26일 홍콩을 출발, 싱가포르로 항해하 다 이날 오전 말레이시아 산다칸 부근 해역에서 기관실에 불이 났다고 필리핀 해안경비대 대변인은 전했다.
불은 다행히 승무원들에 의해 즉각 진화됐으며, 이 과정에서 1명이 중화상을 입 는 등 승무원 5명이 다쳤다.
유람선은 이날 화재로 엔진 2곳이 마비돼 현재 남중국해와 말레이시아 접경인 남중국해를 표류하고 있다고 필리핀 해안경비대는 밝혔다.
해안경비대는 "부근해역을 지나던 페리선과 예인업체의 신고가 접수될 당시 유람선은 필리핀 투바타하 리프에서 남서쪽으로 약 75해리(약 139km) 떨어진 해상에 있었다"고 말했다.
유람선 운영업체인 '아자마라 클럽 크루즈'는 성명에서 승객 가운데 부상자는 발생하지 않았다면서 기관실 1곳에서 불이 나 즉시 진화했다고 전했다.
성명은 이어 유람선은 현재 아무런 추진 동력도 없는 상태라며 자체 기술진이 수리에 나서고 있다고 밝혔다.
필리핀 해군과 해안경비대는 사고 해역에 해안경비대 함정 2척과 초계정 1척 등 구조대를 급파하는 등 구조활동에 들어갔다. 이들 구조대는 이날 오후 늦게 부근 해 역에 도착할 예정이다.
해안경비대 대변인은 사고 유람선 승무원들과 직접적인 교신이 없었다면서 화재 가 난 상황에서 아무런 조난신고가 접수되지 않은 경위를 조사하고 있다고 밝혔다.
3만277t의 호화 유람선인 아자마라 퀘스트호는 4월12일 싱가포르에 도착하기 앞서 유명 관광지 발리섬 등 인도네시아 지역의 여러 항구를 방문할 예정이었으며, 승 객 590명과 승무원 411명이 타고 있는 것으로 확인됐다.
승객 대부분은 유럽과 미국에서 온 여행객들로 파악됐다
사고 유람선을 소유한 `아자마라 클럽 크루즈'는 올해 1월 이탈리아 서해안에서 침몰해 32명이 숨진 유람선 사고 등 크고 작은 사고가 끊이지 않던 `로열 캐리비언 크루즈' 계열사로 알려졌다. (연합뉴스)
