Sweden: ferry runs aground with 75 passengers on board, fuel washed into sea

The Marco Polo ferry of the TT-Line company, which operated a connection between the ports of Trelleborg and Karlshamn, in Sweden, ran aground on Sunday October 22, with 75 passengers on board. The coast guard said all people were evacuated from the boat.

According to a press release from the latter, relayed by AFP, THE ferry “let diesel escape several kilometers before running aground where it is stuck”, before hitting the Swedish coast at the end of the afternoon. But the weather conditions, and in particular thick fog, prevent for the moment an assessment of the extent damage. The Swedish Civil Protection Agency (MSB) was called in to assist and will begin decontamination of the sitethis Monday.

The railway company said Swedish authorities, the ship’s command and TT-Line’s shore team are assessing the ferry’s damage. But already, the hull had several holes in the fore and amidships, and water had seeped into it. “Investigators are on site to determine the circumstances of the accident,” said Jonatan Örn, senior coastguard investigator.