Multiple Canadians Rescued From Cruise Ship After Engines Failed In The Middle Of A Storm

Multiple Canadians didn't quite get the sunny vacation that they were hoping for this weekend. This Saturday, a Viking Sky Cruise released a mayday call after it's engines failed with over 1,350 people on board, 15 of them being Canadians.  Global Affairs Canada has confirmed to CTV News that at least one of those Canadians had been injured on board. 

The Viking Sky Cruise ship sailed into poor weather off the coast of Norway on Saturday when its engines failed while in the middle of the cruise. Video footage from passengers of the ship shows the treacherous conditions as furniture flew across rooms and boards fell from ceilings. Fortunately, the boat managed to stay afloat. 

After a mayday call was sent out by ship operators, a rescue operation was quickly launched where hundreds of passengers were airlifted to safety from the cruise ship. A total of 476 out of the 1,373 passengers were airlifted by helicopters during Saturday night and into Sunday morning. 

However, not every passenger was able to get off the boat. The remaining passengers and crew members that were not airlifted were forced to stay on the boat as it was towed back to shore. 

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EU: Viking Sky cruise ship running aground off Norway | March 23 2019 | Bloomberg | 📹 Alexus Sheppard https://t.co/pNeMuyP36kpic.twitter.com/zGyyeOXDk5

March 23, 2019

At least 20 people were injured during this engine failure, one of them being Canadian. The extent of their injuries has not yet been released. 

The cruise ship docked in Norway earlier today and all passengers have been evacuated from the boat. 

Viking Sky: Stricken cruise ship finally arrives at port after hours strandedThe vessel suffered engine failure last night with 1,300 people on board, leaving holidaymakers terrified pic.twitter.com/AMKbZ9wR0X

March 24, 2019

Viking Cruise spokesman told ABC News in a statement, "Our first priority was for the safety and well-being of our passengers and our crew, and in close cooperation with the Norwegian Coast Guard, the captain decided to evacuate all guests from the vessel by helicopter,".

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This engine failure comes weeks after CNN Travel commemorated the top honours and awards that Viking Ocean Cruises had achieved. This year, Viking Ocean Cruises have won ten first-place awards in the annual Cruise Critic Cruisers' Choice Awards. 

* Disclaimer: Cover photo for illustrative purposes only.