Chilean Navy Rescues 120 from Passenger Ship

By The Maritime Executive 02-08-2015 03:52:31

Chile’s navy assisted in successfully rescuing 89 passengers and 31 crewmembers aboard the grounded Skorpios II, 14 kilometers southwest of Puerto Montt. There was no report of injuries. The passengers, mostly foreigners, were transferred to Navy Pier Tenglo aboard the PSG Micalvi.

At 06:46 hours on Thursday, the local maritime authority received a distress call from Skorpios II reporting that the the vessel got stuck around 06:20 hours. Naval patrol boats and aircraft immediately deployed to the scene.

Officials immediately dismissed the presence of fuel at sea.

The cause of the grounding is unclear, but is under investigation. Commander in Chief (S) of the Fifth Naval Zone of the Chilean Navy, Captain Germán Toledo, said that "it is a matter of research, I have no hypothesis for now, but already constituted the Maritime Fiscal and we are the first steps. They are all controlled risks.”

Skorpios II is designed to cruise the icy waters of Chile's fjords, with a capacity of 160 passengers in 55 cabins.