PH forces escort limping liner to sea border with Malaysia

A LUXURY cruise ship stranded at sea for 24 hours by a fire in the southwestern Philippines was limping toward the Malaysian port of Sandakan yesterday, with ship escorts from the Philippine Navy and Philippine Coast Guard.

The Azamara Quest was adrift in waters near Palawan for a full day after flames engulfed one of its engine rooms Friday night, injuring five crew members. It regained propulsion late Saturday night and was expected to reach the harbor of Sandakan in Malaysia’s eastern state of Sabah late last night.

Lt. Commander Algier Ricafrente, Coast Guard spokesperson, said the BRP Romblon and at least two ships from the Navy were escorting the Azamara Quest to Malaysia.

The 11-deck cruise liner was expected to reach the Malaysian border by 6:30 p.m. From there, Malaysian authorities were to take over as escorts, Ricafrente said.

Ricafrente said the Coast Guard and Navy wanted to protect the cruise ship, which had 590 passengers and 411 crew—119 of them Filipinos—against pirates who might have heard about its predicament.

Repairs restored emergency power to the ship on Saturday. None of the passengers—mostly Americans and Europeans—were hurt but five crew members suffered from smoke inhalation, including one who was seriously injured and needed hospital care, the ship’s operator said.

Azamara Club Cruises, the ship’s operator, said in a statement yesterday the ship was sailing at a top speed of only 6 knots (11 kilometers or 6.9 miles per hour) and was expected to reach Sandakan at 10 p.m.

Engineers on Saturday morning restored electricity on the ship to reestablish essentials, including running water, plumbing, refrigeration and food preparation, the company said.

The company said the rest of the cruise would be canceled. It said it would fully refund the passengers and provide each guest with a future cruise certificate for the amount paid for the aborted voyage. Azamara Club Cruises is part of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.