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Bulgarian Border Police have completed the evacuation of all 186 passengers from the Swiss-flagged river cruise ship Viking Ullur after the vessel ran aground on the Danube near Vidin (Bulgaria).
The ship became stranded early on Tuesday at river kilometre 817, opposite the village of Gomotartsi and ~25 kilometres upstream from Vidin. Authorities reported that the grounding was caused by low water levels.
At the time of the incident, Viking Ullur was carrying 186 passengers from European Union member states and a crew of 52.
The Viking vessel had been scheduled to replenish food and drinking water supplies in Vidin but was unable to reach the port after running aground. As supplies on board became depleted, the ship's local agent arranged for the French-flagged river cruise vessel Vivaldi to transfer the passengers. However, Vivaldi was unable to approach close enough to the stranded vessel, leading Bulgarian Border Police to organise the evacuation.
Following authorisation from the River Supervision Directorate in Lom and an assessment of the situation, Border Police deployed a patrol boat from the Vidin Border Police Vessels Base to transfer all passengers safely ashore.
The transfer of passengers' luggage was continuing on Tuesday. Authorities indicated that the future of the 52 crew members remained uncertain, as Viking Ullur could remain aground for an extended period depending on river conditions and the success of future refloating operations.
Initial reports had placed the vessel near Salcia in Romania's Mehedinți County. The ship had departed Drobeta-Turnu Severin on Monday evening bound for Vidin. Multiple attempts to refloat the vessel on Monday night and again on Tuesday morning were unsuccessful, and the cruise ship remained stranded while authorities assessed further recovery options.
