Miraculous Rescue: 77 Migrants Saved by RCI-Royal Caribbean’s Odyssey of the Seas

Passengers aboard RCI-Royal Caribbean International‘s Odyssey of the Seas witnessed a maritime rescue during their 7-day Greek Island cruise.

Overnight, the ship assisted in the rescue of 77 migrants, who were later transported to a Greek port, according to the Hellenic Coast Guard. The incident occurred after a Maltese-flagged cargo vessel reported a sailboat in distress, located 112 nautical miles (207 km) southwest of Pylos (Greece), in the Ionian Sea.

The Odyssey of the Seas, a 167,700-gross-ton ship with a capacity for 4,198 passengers, was en route from Civitavecchia (Rome, Italy) to Santorini (Greece) when she was requested to assist by altering course. Passengers reported limited information and circulating rumors as the ship approached the scene early Tuesday morning, August 6. The cruise ship deployed a tender and later a smaller launch to assist the sailboat, which appeared overloaded and struggling.

Video footage shared by passengers shows the cruise ship’s tender towing the sailboat before bringing the 77 migrants aboard. The migrants were later transferred to the southern Greek port of Kalamata.

Due to the rescue operation, the Odyssey of the Seas canceled her planned stop at Santorini and headed to Kusadasi (Turkey) to continue her scheduled itinerary.

For more Odyssey of the Seas incidents and accidents see the ship’s CruiseMinus page.