Antarctica avoids catastrophe, cruise ship evacuated by Romana Schlesingerova

MS Explorer, cruise ship packed with 154 passengers and crew has been safely evacuated, after it experienced problems near the Argentinean borders this week. The disaster had a lucky end, not as the case of the ferry Estonia, which caused more than a hundred of human lives. The boat went down after hitting an iceberg and the passengers spent several hours in lifeboats in sub-zero temperatures. "The water was already this high in our cabin in a matter of minutes," one passenger said. "We grabbed our thermals before we left and that was it. The rest is gone," added another. In less than one hour all passengers and crew, said to be cold but in good health, were safely transferred to the Nordnorge, and that vessel is now heading towards King George Island, three or four hours steaming away. Speaking on the BBC's News 24, the captain of the Nordnorge said that he was heading for the Chilean research station, from where it is expected that all can be flown back to the South American mainland. The accident has highlighted the growing tourist industry in the Antarctic. This region is experiencing a major touristic boom. In the 1992-93 seasons, about 6,700 tourists visited the Antarctic, according to the International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators. Last season, that had quadrupled to 29,500. What country wouldn't be pleased and happy about a sudden improvement? Antarctica, honestly, is not. The land, which serves as one of the most important world reserves, is now worried. Cruise ships and ferries can bring more of a catastrophe than behalf.

by Romana Schlesingerova for PocketNews (http://pocketnews.tv)

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