Five people have been killed and three injured when a lifeboat fell into the sea from a cruise ship docked at the port of Santa Cruz in the Canary Islands. Three of the crew members were Indonesian, one was Filipino and the fifth was Ghanaian.
Transport union: 'Issue of safety' in cruise ship mishap
The National Union for Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT) have responded to the cruise ship accident, which left five crew members dead, after a lifeboat fell from the cruise ship. RMT general secretary said:
The thoughts of all seafarers will be with the friends and families of those who have lost their lives in this tragic incident.
Once again the spotlight is on the issue of safety in the UK shipping and cruise industry and RMT awaits the outcome of the investigation and recommendations that can prevent any repetition of today's shocking events.
Thomson Cruises have confirmed that several crew members from their cruise ship had died after falling overboard a cruise ship, during a routine emergency drill.
In a statement, the tour company said:
There have sadly been five crew fatalities and three crew injuries.
The Foreign Office have responded to an incident where five people died after a lifeboat fell from a cruise ship in the Canary Islands.
The ship's operator- UK-based tour company Thomson Cruises- said the incident in the port of Santa Cruz in La Palma involved the vessel's crew. A Foreign Office spokesman said:
We are aware, and we are seeking further information.
Emergency services attended to a cruise ship accident where reportedly five crew members died after falling overboard a cruise ship, during a routine emergency drill.
Television images showed a small, white two-hulled lifeboat capsized beside the ship.
It was not immediately clear if there were any other people in the lifeboat when it crashed into the sea, or whether the Thomson Majesty ship had any passengers on it.
The first pictures that have emerged showing the Thomson Majesty cruise ship, on which five people died, show that one lifeboat still in the water.
Thomson Majesty docked in the port of Santa Cruz in the Canary Islands Credit: EBUThe upturned white hull of one of the ship's lifeboats can be seen next to a local Coatsguard vessel Credit: EBU
Thomson Cruises to 'give assistance' after ship mishap
Thomson Cruises has issued a statement after five crew members were reported to have died, falling overboard from one of their cruise ships in the Canary Islands. The UK firm said:
[We are] aware of an incident involving the ship's crew on board Thomson Majesty, in La Palma, Canary Islands this afternoon.
We are working closely with the ship owners and managers, Louis Cruises, to determine exactly what has happened and provide assistance to those affected by the incident.
Local media: Crew members died during routine drill
Five people who died after falling overboard a British-registered cruise ship, the Thomson Majesty, were members of the ship's crew, Spanish media Canaria Ahoras is reporting.
The crew members were conducting a routine rescue manoeuvre, when the cable crane of the lifeboat snapped, trapping all eight crew members under the hull of the small boat while it was carry out the emergency drill.
