Vessel taking on water and leaking fuel
A cruise ship carrying 122 passengers and crew has run aground in Antarctica, and has started to take on water and leak fuel.
A nearby passenger ship is reportedly on its way to the stricken Ushuaia. An Argentine Admiral said “We’ve received information from the captain of the Ushuaia that the boat is grounded … with a minimal amount of water coming in and some fuel loss.”
He said the ship lay some 186 miles (300 km) southwest of Argentina’s Marambio military base on the Antarctic Peninsula.
Cruise travel has grown in Antarctica in recent years, with tourists paying thousands of dollars to see towering icebergs, seals, whales and penguins. A year ago, more than 150 crew and passengers, many of them elderly, escaped unhurt in a dramatic rescue after their cruise ship hit ice off Antarctica and sank.