Five Dead, Three Hurt During Cruise Ship Safety Drill
The Thomson Majesty was docked in La Palma, the Canary Islands, when a lifeboat with only crew members aboard fell about 60 feet during a drill.
Thomson Cruises has confirmed that five crew members of the cruise ship Thomson Majesty were killed and three others were injured when a safety drill went wrong. The ship was docked in La Palma, Canary Islands when a lifeboat with the crew members aboard fell about 60 feet during the drill at 11:50 a.m. local time Sunday.
The company's statement said one of the injured people has been discharged from a hospital and the other two are to be released from the hospital imminently.
"Our thoughts are with the families of those involved. We are working closely with the ship owners and managers, Louis Cruises, to determine exactly what has happened and provide assistance to those affected by the incident. We are also working closely with all relevant authorities and will be co-operating fully with their investigations," it said.
Thomson is a major travel company in Britain, operating a charter airline, the cruise fleet of five ships, hotels, and family resorts.