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Freaky news today. Two are dead and six injured after a 26 foot wave hit the Louis Majesty cruise ship off the coast of France. Neary 2,000 people are on board. Glass windows and windshields were smashed. Two passengers are dead, a German of unknown gender and an Italian man. Six fourteen others have light injuries. See updates below. New video of wave washing inside the ship. See second video below.
Louis Majesty Cruise Ship
"The windows in a public area on deck 5 on the forward part of the vessel smashed resulting (in) the fatal injury of two passengers of German and Italian nationality while 14 more passengers suffered light injuries," the line says in a statement.
The Majesty was in the midst of a 12-night Western Mediterranean cruise out of Genoa that included calls in Tunisia, Morocco, the Canary Islands and Spain. It had been scheduled to return to Genoa on Thursday but instead will head back to Barcelona, it's last port of call, the line says.The Greek Louis Cruise Line said their ship was hit by three "abnormally high" waves, near the port of Marseilles, sailing from Barcelona, Spain to Genoa, Italy. The ship had 1,350 passengers and a crew of 580. The ship is now sailing back to Barcelona.
Update 3-4-10:
The names of the dead have not been released. The German man was 69-years-old and was from North Rhine Westphalia. The Italian man was 52-years-old. The two men reportedly died before they could be taken to the ship's hospital. Among the injuries is an elderly woman with two broken legs from the incident, and passenger with a broken hand. Twenty-seven nations were represented on the cruise, including Americans.
The 18 year-old ship was hit in the "forward section."
The waves smashed windows on deck five in public areas -- on the forward part, or bow, of the 14-deck ship. Two male passengers -- a German and an Italian -- were killed, Maratheftis said.A" yellow alert" was out for land and near the coast. The ship was 24 miles off the coast, and this report says the ship was just off the coast of Spain.
The incident occurred 24 miles off Cabo de San Sebastian, near the Spanish town of Palafrugell, Maratheftis said.The ship was on the last day of its voyage after a week-long cruise, and was expected to dock in Genoa, Italy.
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