Dean Altman
Imagine being on a cruise when a storm hits and you lose power. That sounds like a complete nightmare scenario, and it is. And 1,373 passengers aboard the Viking Sky just experienced it.
The cruise ship was just off the shore of Norway Saturday morning when they made the mayday call. They had experienced engine failure and were now stranded in the middle of storm called a “bomb cyclone” that had the air pressure of Category 3 hurricane, according to The Washington Post. The waves were over 60 feet high and the boat was listing wildly. It was also very close to running up against the rocky shoreline.
Prepare for some truly terrifying pictures while you cancel your next cruise vacation.
1. LOOK AT ALL THIS WATER!
https://twitter.com/oxman78/status/1109511743364128768
2. Videos taken by (LGBT legend) Alexus Sheppard showed just how crazy it got.
https://twitter.com/alexus309/status/1109570007657115648
You can hear someone say “Not the Steinway!” a few moments before a chair sailed into the piano.
One crew member described the ships restaurants and lounges to USA Today: “Everything was broken: plates, glasses, furniture. He also said he saw a heavy grand piano go flying upside down so things don’t sound good for the piano in this video.
3. Check out how scarily the ship was being tossed around by the sea.
https://twitter.com/alexus309/status/1109530668290183172
“It was frightening at first,” Sheppard told the Associated Press. “And when the general alarm sounded, it became very real.”
4. Part of a ceiling fell ona woman’s head.
https://twitter.com/alexus309/status/1109537029912711168
5. While the experience was awful, people pointed out how great the ship’s crew was while it was going on.
On board the Viking Sky. The crew is doing an amazing job on trending to us. The galley has been damaged, broken glass, wine bottles, dishes, etc. Yet they have managed to make sandwiches, bring water and keep us calm. #VikingSky
— Michal Stewart (@like2trvl) March 24, 2019
6. But the crew couldn’t do anything about the fact that people had to sleep in the main rooms.
https://twitter.com/alexus309/status/1109617042817200128
7. Fifteen hours later, and people were still waiting to be evacuated.
https://twitter.com/oxman78/status/1109666460220248064
8. People were eventually airlifted to safety via helicopter, which also sounds pretty effing scary.
Norwegian rescue helicopters airlifted passengers from a cruise ship off the coast of Norway after the ship lost engine power amid strong winds and heavy seas. After hundreds were evacuated, the ship regained power and returned to the port. https://t.co/aaaflSyDie pic.twitter.com/y0ioob6kzg
— ABC News (@ABC) March 25, 2019
9. On Sunday, the ship was towed in to shore.
https://twitter.com/alexus309/status/1109835540331933697
10. People were thrilled to be off the boat; many were injured and gotthe care they needed.
Passengers from #VikingSky are received by #RødeKors on arrival #Hustadvika evacuation centre. They receive dry clothes, blankets and first aid. We see bruising, broken bones, and cuts. Many need a hand to hold, a shoulder to lean on, someone to talk to. https://t.co/87I9J5L60x pic.twitter.com/fBiob0vyeY
— Norges Røde Kors (@rodekorsnorge) March 24, 2019
11. And finally, everyone was safe.
https://twitter.com/alexus309/status/1109924149466750977
Whew!
h/t: BuzzFeed
