SPIRIT OF DISCOVERY

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Interim report about death of passenger in storm

A passenger aboard the 'Spirit of Discovery' died of his injuries after the cruise ship was hit by force 11 winds on Nov 4, 2023, in the Bay of Biscay, an interim MAIB report of the incident has revealed. Eight passengers were taken to hospital when the ship arrived at Portsmouth in Hampshire. Prior to the incident, the ship had to cancel a visit to Las Palmas as the weather worsened and was instead heading towards La Corona when that port was closed because of the conditions. The captaintook the decision to return to the UK when the ship's propulsion safety system was activated in the poor weather causing it to veer suddenly to the left, bringing the vessel to a sudden halt. There were 943 passengers and 503 crew on board. At about 12.30 on Nov 4, 2023, the ship lost propulsion which led to the vessel moving violently while the crew restarted the vessel's engines. The propulsion issues, storm force conditions and vessel motions continued until the following morning when the 'Spirit of Discovery' was able to continue its passage. During this period over 100 passengers were injured. Eight of the seriously injured passengers were taken directly to hospital on arrival at Portsmouth, England, one of whom later died from their injuries. The MAIB's investigation has considered all aspects of the accident to determine the causes and circumstances of the propulsion loss in heavy weather and the on-board response, including analysis of the vessel's intended passage, preparations for operating in heavy weather, the on-board response to passenger injuries and damage, and the medical treatment of injured passengers. The interim report stated that the investigation was nearly complete and a full report will then be issued for consultation with the parties involved.

MAIB investigatiing storm cruise

The Marine Accident Investigation Branch has revealed the nature of its investigation into the 'Spirit of Discovery' storm cruise that resulted in around 100 passengers suffering injuries. The Marine Accident Investigation Branch was looking into the matter that led to four people of the 1,000 on board being seriously injured and has published further detail under its current investigations section. It stated the accident/incident type as a “loss of propulsion of a UK registered passenger vessel in the Bay of Biscay, resulting in multiple passenger injuries during heavy weather”. The incident happened when the ship's propulsion safety system suddenly activated and turned the ship, resulting in injuries to passengers, who then spent around 18 hours waiting for the storm and gales to pass as the ship was relentlessly battered by giant waves. Saga was offering to refund the cost of the voyage in a multi-million pound pay-out. Customer voyages were understood to have costed from around £3,000 to £6,000 depending on the cabin size and its location.

Fivee passengers treated in hospital after storm ride

The 'Spirit of Discovery' was forced to cut short the cruise returning to the UK on Nov 6, with reports of as many as 15 % of the passengers aboard having been injured and five taken as a precaution to hospitals. The vessel was on a two-week trip from Portsmouth, UK, to the Canary Islands. The vessel had completed most of its trip, although it was forced to forgo a stop at Las Palmas due to the worsening weather. The vessel had planned to make a port call in A Coruna on Nov 5, but it was forced to skip that stop as well when the port was closed due to the bad weather. The vessel turned north toward the UK amid waves which were running between 30 and 45 feet with winds up to 70 metres per hour in the Bay of Biscay. It took the unusual step of going 'hove to' in the storm to reduce further injuries and danger for the passengers. Most of the injuries were minor, but there were reports of lacerations with some people requiring stitches and broken bones. On the whole between 100 and 150 passengers were injured. The 'Spirit of Discovery' returned to Portsmouth on the evening of Nov 6, about 12 hours ahead of schedule. The vessel departed as scheduled on Nov 7, heading to Ponta Delgada as the first stop on a month-long cruise to the Caribbean.