Posted on Nov 23, 2018
by in Cruise News
A stormy night in the Aegean turned into a daring rescue mission for Costa Luminosa. The cruise ship responded to a distress call while en route to the Greek port of Katakon. A Turkish fishing vessel called Kilic 1 suffered an engine room fire and its crew needed to be rescued.
Cruise ship comes to the rescue despite high winds and waves
Battling thirty-knot winds and waves reaching around six feet, the Costa Luminosa altered its course to help the burnigh fishing ship. The cruise ship received the distress call from the Greek Coast Guard’s Piraues rescue coordination center. With Captain Pietro Sinisi at the helm, the Luminosa successfully rescued the crew of Kilic 1.
11 fishermen saved by Costa Luminosa safely returned to shore
A tender on board the Luminosa retrieved the 11 crew members from the burning fishing boat. All crew from the distressed fishing vessel are in good health, according to reports. After their rescue, they transferred to a cargo ship connected to the Greek Coast Guard.
Passengers praise “amazing effort” of cruise ship crew
Despite the rescue taking place in the middle of the night, some passengers witnessed the operations. Passenger Michele Jackson posted pictures of the Luminosa crew preparing lifeboats to social media.
“I just saw firsthand the amazing efforts of the crew working together to provide aid in a time of need,” she wrote. “Never have I seen the deployment of a life boat or the effort it takes to coordinate putting it back in place after a rescue.”