Operation underway to rescue ferry passengers in Gran Canaria

A RESCUE operation is underway to disembark 74 passengers on a ferry which got stranded due to Storm Filomena in Gran Canaria when it was attempting to dock.

The 112 emergency services alerted last night, January 7, when the Bentago Express, a high-speed ferry that covers the regular line between Gran Canaria and Tenerife ran aground in the port of Agaete, Gran Canaria.

Despite several attempts to safely disembark the 57 passengers and 17 crew members, the operation could not be completed, and was resumed again in the early hours of this morning, Friday, January 8.

With the support of tugboats, attempts are underway to disembark the passengers from the Fred Olsen Express company’s ferry. It has now been secured and brought closer to the dock, with the help of first three fishing boats and then another three Maritime Salvage boats, the Miguel de Cervantes, Guardamar Polimnia and Salvamar Nunki.

In a statement, the shipping company explained that the incident that the Bentago Express suffered during the approach to the dock was due to “severe weather conditions”, specifically the strong southwest wind blowing in that area of ​​Gran Canaria.

All the people on board the ferry “are well and informed at all times,” says 112.

At around 9am, the 112 Emergency services in the Canary Islands retweeted the message from Fred Olsen Express explaining that because of the low tide, the manoeuvre to disembark the passengers and crew had not been possible and that it would be carried out at high tide.

Encalla el barco de Fred Olsen en Agaete debido al temporal a pocos mettos del muelle.

Un coche fue arrastrado en los altos de San Bartolomé de Tirajana y sus ocupantes consiguieron salir

El paso Filomena es peligroso, hay que evitar circular por las zonas afectadas #FMA pic.twitter.com/CPcIogo0Nu

— Cabildo Gran Canaria (@GranCanariaCab) January 7, 2021

Thank you for taking the time to read this news article “Operation underway to rescue ferry passengers in Gran Canaria”. For more UK daily news, Spanish daily news and Global news stories, visit the Euro Weekly News home page.