Viking Line Ferry Grounds in Finland

Viking Line’s MS Amorella ferry carrying almost 300 people between Finland and Sweden is seen after it ran aground off the Aland Islands in the Baltic Sea September 20, 2020 in this still image taken from a social media video. Johan Soderstrom via REUTERS

The Viking Line ferry MS Amorella ran aground Sunday in the Baltic Sea island of Åland, Finland with 200 passengers and 80 crew, the shipping company said.

All passengers have been evacuated to land with no injuries and the active rescue has ended.

The ship was on the Turku–Stockholm route when the grounding occurred at 1250 local time on Sunday. The extent of damage is being investigated.

The MS Amorella was built in 1988 and has capacity for 2,480 passengers and 450 cars. It runs daily voyages from Turku to the Stadsgården terminal in Stockholm, according to Viking Line’s website.

The cause of the grounding was not immediately clear. However, the Finnish Coast Guard on Monday indicated that the ship made contact with the seabed and intentionally grounded on the island to stabilize the situation.

Amorella saanut pohjakosketuksen Långnäsin eteläpuolella. Alus ajanut itsensä saaren rantaan tilanteen vakauttamiseksi. Useita yksiköitä hälytetty ja useita aluksia paikalla valmistautumassa evakuointiin. Tällä hetkellä tilanne vakaa ja ihmishenkiä ei välittömässä vaarassa. pic.twitter.com/zELcoYtzgk

— Merivartiosto – LSMV (@meriraja) September 20, 2020

AIS ship tracking from MarineTraffic.com shows the voyage of the Amorella:

Viking Line said Monday divers were inspecting the hull for damage before possible towing to a shipyard.

Update at 10.30 Finnish time:

Divers have examined the ship during Sunday evening. The extent of the damage is currently being investigated. Some damage has been found at the bottom but is being investigated further. The goal is to transport Amorella to the shipyard. Before that, it is evaluated whether the vessel can be towed to the yard. The work schedule has not yet been confirmed, the investigation is expected to take a few days. Viking Line will decide with the relevant authorities what measures will be taken.

The Amorella was replaced on its route on Monday by the MS Gabriella until further notice, the company said.

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