The Costa Pacific
Strong winds caused a Costa Crociere cruise ship to slam against a pier in Marseilles, France, leaving a nearly 30-foot long gash in the side of the ship above the waterline.
In a statement, Costa Crociere says that strong gust of wind caused the Costa Pacifica to make contact with a mooring point at about 8 a.m. Tuesday during a berthing maneuver at the port of Marseille. The statement said that no injuries to passengers or crew were reported and the allision left a “few meters scratch on the ship’s starboard side.”
The Costa Pacifica is a Concordia-class cruise ship, and sister ship to the Costa Concordia.
The incident delayed the 114,500-ton, 3,000-passenger cruise ship from continuing its six-day cruise around the Mediterranean by about 8 hours as they awaited repairs.
A photo of the damage to the Costa Pacifica can be found HERE.
I used to live in Marseille and that mistral wind is like nothing I’ve ever experienced.
the mistral winds are well known to experienced seafarers and if such winds have to be considered it might be wise to engage tug assistance which might be cheaper at the end rather then having 8 hrs delay in addition to the repair-costs….