Ocean Explorer, the luxury ship that ran aground off of Greenland's eastern coastline earlier this week, was successfully freed by a fishing research vessel Thursday morning (September 14).
According to Denmark's Joint Arctic Command, the ship, which was carrying 206 passengers and crew, ran aground in Alpefjord on Monday (September 11) and had failed several attempts to refloat, raising concerns it would be stuck for days awaiting the arrival of a larger Danish naval ship which was en route to assist.
Earlier, three passengers on board were placed in isolation after contracting COVID-19, tour agency Aurora Expeditions, the ship's operator, announced Thursday. All others aboard were said to be healthy and safe.
The agency added that neither the ship, its passengers, nor the surrounding water had been in danger due to the incident.
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Ocean Explorer Assisted to Refloat, Ship Owner Says
Meanwhile, SunStone, the ship's Florida-based owner, said the Ocean Explorer had been successfully assisted off its grounding by Tarajoq, a Greenland research vessel involved in several earlier attempts to refloat the cruise ship.
"There have not been any injuries to any person on board, no pollution of the environment, and no breach of the hull," the company said in a press release.
It added that an "additional tug" would be on standby to assist in case it was needed, but has since been stood down.
"We would like to thank our charterer Aurora Expeditions as well as all their passengers for excellent cooperation in this unexpected and difficult circumstance," SunStone added, further saying that the passengers have been taken to a port and be subsequently flown back home.
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