Jean Nicoli ferry accidents and incidents

07 March 2017Structural and Technical Issues

On March 7, 2017, while en-route from Ajaccio (Corsica) to Marseille (mainland France), the cruiseferry was hit by rogue waves. The Captain issued a distress call and assisted by tugboats the vessel was escorted to Port Toulon. The sustained damages affected ship's Navigation Bridge (the navigational devices) which required repairs to be done at La Seyne-Sur-Mer (Cote d'Azur / French Riviera). On March 10, it left the shipyard and headed back to homeport Marseille.

31 July 2016Other Incidents

On July 31, 2016, at ~9 am, the cruise ship was fully evacuated in Port Marseille (La Joliette) following an explosion during the passenger boarding. The liner was scheduled for a regular crossing from Marseille to Porto Torres (Sardinia Island, Italy). All the 77 passengers and crew were forced to evacuate the ferry. According to the police reports, the accidental explosion was produced by ammunition from WW2 (1939-45) lying on the seabed. The ship was cleared and left for Sardinia in late-afternoon.

18 June 2010Propulsion / Power Loss

On June 18, 2010, while en-route from Porto Vecchio (Corsica) to Marseille, due to propeller shaft damage, the liner was rerouted to Bizerte (Tunisia) for urgent shipyard repairs.

21 July 2009Boat Rescue

On July 21, 2009, the ship was navigating in Gulf of Propriano (Corsica) en-route from Porto-Vecchio to Marseille. At ~10:10 pm, it received a distress call from CrossMed (Regional Operational Centers for Surveillance and Rescue) as several mayday signals (rockets) were launched from a person on a drifting liferaft, approx 35 km off Corsica's coast.

Upon arrival at the scene, the ferry launched one of its lifeboats to recover the passenger. At ~11 pm, the man was on board and the ship resumed the crossing to France. The man was on a fishing trip when his speedboat (11-m watercraft) struck an unidentified wreck and sank.

05 July 1998Ship Collision / Allision

Just one day after the inaugural cruise (July 4, 1998), on July 5, upon leaving Port Kerkira (Corfu Island, Greece) and during maneuvering the ship collided with the dock and sustained stern hull damages.

No injuries were reported. The vessel was put out of service and repaired in Port Elefsis (West Attica, ~18 km / 11 mi northwest of Athens). It continued the Greece-Italy service (Patras-Igoumenitsa-Corfu-Ancona) on July 30.

Note: Actually, this type of marine accident is called “allision” (striking a fixed object) as opposed to “collision” (striking another vessel).