The crew of AIDAnova helped rescue four fishermen who abandoned their burning vessel in the Skagerrak on Sunday afternoon, October 18.
The Danish-flagged fishing boat was in Norwegian waters between Denmark and Norway when the fire broke out. All four crew members escaped into a liferaft before being picked up by a rescue boat launched from the cruise ship. No injuries were reported.
AIDAnova was sailing from Kiel, Germany, to Bergen, Norway, when it diverted to assist. German cruise news outlet Schiffe und Kreuzfahrten said the ship launched a boat after reaching the scene, where the fishermen had already evacuated their vessel. Following the rescue, AIDAnova continued toward Bergen.
Norway’s Joint Rescue Coordination Centre for Southern Norway coordinated the operation. Rescue coordinator Per Ivar Austnaberg told Norwegian newspaper VG that smoke and flames had been observed coming from the fishing vessel. At around 3:35 p.m. local time, he confirmed that all four people had been recovered safely, according to Danish fishing industry publication FiskerForum.
The emergency also drew assistance from the air. Norwegian and Danish helicopters responded, with a Norwegian rescue helicopter arriving from Sola at 3:23 p.m. It later returned after everyone from the fishing vessel had been accounted for, according to Baird Maritime.
Color Line’s ferry SuperSpeed 1 was also diverted toward the scene. It was released from the operation shortly after 3:30 p.m. and resumed its crossing once the fishermen were safely recovered.
The cause of the fire remained unknown in the initial reports. The rescued crew members’ nationalities had not been publicly confirmed.
Photo credit: Dindo Petallana Ongbit
