3,000-passenger cruise ship ran aground off Dominican Republic, then was freed
RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – A Norwegian Cruise Line vessel “Escape” carrying about 3,000 passengers and 1,600 staff ran aground on Monday, having left the Dominican Republic’s Puerto Plata after struggling with “strong 30-knot winds”.
It was refloated on Tuesday following eight hours of work to free it, authorities said.
The Norwegian Escape, which ran aground Monday after leaving Puerto Plata, was “rescued without major incidents and all the tourists and crew on board were unharmed,” the Dominican navy said on social media.
The cruise ship — which has 1,600 crew members on board — returned to Puerto Plata for inspections before being allowed to set sail.
The navy said it had created an investigatory commission to look into the “factors that resulted in the cruise ship running aground.”
According to Norwegian Cruise Line’s website, the Norwegian Escape is over 300 m long and weighs 165,000 tons.
It can accommodate up to 4,200 passengers and 1,700 crew members.
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