Second cruise scare for UK family
2012-02-28 12:20
Cape Town – A British father is in anguish after hearing that his daughter is one of the more than 1 000 passengers on a stranded Costa cruise liner, only weeks after his son made it out of another stricken Costa cruise liner alive, say news reports.
"We just can't believe it and are absolutely amazed that this has happened again. We can't put it into words. I was really worried when I heard because of what James went through, "48-year-old Mark Thomas told the Daily Mail.
The two siblings, 23-year-old Rebecca and James, aged 18, work for the Italian cruise liner company, Costa, as dancers, said the report.
"At least James was in a better situation with the Concordia because it was so close to the shore. But it's worrying because Rebecca is in the middle of the ocean and we don't really know exactly what is going on. "
The Costa Allegra suffered a power failure on Monday night after an engine room fire, leaving the cruise liner drifting about 418km from the Seychelles in an area where pirates are known to prey on ships. The fire was put out and there were no injuries reported, the paper said.
This comes six weeks after the Allegra's sister ship, the Costa Concordia, ran aground off the Italian coast.
James was hailed a hero after he helped frightened passengers leave the doomed Concordia by forming a "human climbing frame".
Thirty-two people are believed to have died in that tragedy, although the bodies of 15 have are yet to be recovered.
The Associated Press reported on Tuesday that a French fishing vessel had begun towing the Allegra to the nearby Seychelles island of Desroches, but was not expected to reach the island until Wednesday.
