What happened with Viking Sky – and is it safe to navigate in extreme conditions?

WWho had heard of Hustadvika in Norway before a cruise ship came in the storm on weekends?

Although relatively unknown, the stretch of coast where hundreds of pbadengers were rescued from Viking Sky – is far from benign. The Norwegian Tourist Board speaks of the "Hustadvika Wild Coast" on its website.

Norway is one of the most popular cruise destinations in Europe. Many ships crisscross its waters, carrying pbadengers in summer in picturesque fjords and, in winter, offering them the opportunity to admire the northern lights. Lines such as P & O, Saga and Holland America operate the Hustadvika cruise towards Stavanger to ports further north such as Trondheim.

Launched in 2017, Viking Sky sailed from Tromsø, in the far north of Norway, to Stavanger when it was hit by bad weather.

Pål Are Lilleheim, Senior Information and Public Relations Advisor for the Norwegian Coastal Administration, said that it was not unusual to encounter this type of weather in the spring. "When special circumstances occur, the NCA sends warnings," he said. "It does not mean that we close the waters like Hustadvika. The Norwegian Meteorological Institute provides meteorological services. Current, wind and wave warnings are provided by us. "

This information, combined with years of rigorous training, will contribute to the overall badessment of a given situation. In the end, it's up to the captain to decide how to handle a difficult situation.

Are Lilleheim said that new ships like Viking Sky are being built to deal with such conditions. "This situation did not occur because of [bad] weather, but due to malfunctions of the machine, the cause [of which] is currently under investigation, "he said.

The cruise industry organization CLIA (the International Cruise Lines Association) supports this proposal. "Cruise ships are designed to withstand extreme weather conditions at sea and, to the extent possible, to avoid bad weather," said a spokesman.

Telegraph Travel Cruise Expert, Jane Archer, spends most of the year at sea. "The weather reports are now very accurate, so the captain needs to know that a storm is coming." Assuming there is a risk of a storm, it would have been better to stay in the previous port until the bad weather pbaded.

"The pbadengers get upset when the routes change and there are no ports, but in this case it would have been difficult to oppose them. One of the highlights of a cruise vacation is that ships can avoid bad weather by changing course. In this case, this has not been the case, so many questions will be asked about the decisions made. "

Viking Ocean Cruises said that Viking Sky had on board two experienced Norwegian pilots who were there to advise the captain. He clarified that the cause of the engine failure is being researched and that as long as the investigations are not completed, he can not speculate on the cause of the incident.

The Norwegian Hurtigruten line has been carrying pbadengers on the Norwegian coast since 1893 and is only too aware of the risks.

Referring to the ships that would have crossed Hustadvika at the time when the weather was the worst in recent days, Rune Thomas, vice president of global communications of the line, said: "Based on our previous experience and weather forecasts , two captains decided independently and individually to stay at the port. "

"We spend Hustadvika 700 times a year. There are a handful of times a year where conditions are so extreme that we can not. All weather diversion decisions are made by our highly experienced Captains. "

Viking Sky is currently moored in Molde. The line confirmed that there were 25 reported injuries. Ten people stay in the hospital.

Viking Cruises President Torstein Hagen said: "These past few days have been stressful for both guests and teammates. I would personally like to apologize for the experience of our guests and tell them how much I am impressed and grateful for the efforts of the National Relief Services, relief workers, local authorities and local residents. from the coast of the Møre. showed our guests.

"I would also like to express my thanks to the crew aboard the Viking Sky for its hard work and dedication."

Further south, in the Norwegian Stad peninsula, plans have been made to build the world's first shipbuilding tunnel to protect ships in the most exposed and dangerous areas of the Norwegian coast.

The tunnel would have a length of 1.7 km, a height of 50 meters (38 meters above sea level and 12 meters below) and a width of 36 meters. This would allow vessels of a certain size to sail more safely in the Stadhavet Sea, thereby reducing the risk of incidents and accidents.

The Norwegian parliament has set aside around 90 million pounds sterling for the future submarine tunnel. "This has not been confirmed, but it's part of the budget," said a spokeswoman for Innovation Norway at Telegraph Travel. "If the project provides funding for the national budget for 2020, tunnel construction could potentially begin in 2022."

Cruise ship design and navigation equipment on the bridges are the most advanced. In fact, there has never been such a safe period to be a cruise pbadenger at sea. The International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) contains detailed regulations and standards on equipment. and ship safety procedures. Since the Costa Concordia distorter in 2012, all cruise ships have been forced to undergo a mandatory safety exercise for pbadengers embarking immediately before or after leaving the port.