MSC Euribia accidents and incidents

06 June 2024Crew / Passenger Deaths

(CruiseMapper-emailed report from Ernst)

We are on MSC Euribia and last night [Jun 6th] at around 01:30 a person fell overboard and was retrieved by a Coast Guard helicopter. It was on MSC Euribia on route to Flam. Regards, Ernst.

The incident occurred during the 7-day "Northern Europe Cruise" (itinerary June 1-8, roundtrip from Kiel, Germany) visiting ports in Denmark (Copenhagen/Jun 2) and Norway (Hellesylt and Geiranger/Jun 4, Alesund/Jun 5, and Flam/Jun 6).

UPDATE: News media outlets reported that the male passenger (in his late 50s, traveling with his wife) fell overboard while the ship was navigating Sognefjorden - Norway's largest and deepest fjord. 

The "Mr MOB" alarm ("man overboard") sounded at ~2:15 AM. Kystvakten/Norwegian Coast Guard swiftly dispatched several vessels including a rescue helicopter. CruiseMapper's satellite AIS data (MSC Euribia tracker) showed the ship making a rapid turnaround within the Sognefjord’s confines. A rescue boat was deployed from Euribia.

The man's body was found at ~3 AM, retrieved from a depth of 4300+ ft (~1,3 km), airlifted and flown to Bergen's Haukeland University Hospital where he was pronounced dead.

The police coded the incident as a "suspicious death" and started an investigation, questioning the crew and obtaining CCTV footage from the ship.

Despite the incident, the voyage continued as originally scheduled, without any itinerary changes or delays.

16 March 2024Crew / Passenger Deaths

On March 16, 2024, a 23-year-old male passenger went overboard while the ship was en route from England to Germany.

The young man (Liam Brody Wilkie Jones, social work student from Dundee, Scotland UK) traveled with his family and friends. Reportedly, he was last seen by his sister on an open deck, after texting his wife back home, complaining of seasickness.

His 20-year-old spouse (Sophia Mcphee) last saw him on March 14th, when he left their home to travel from Dundee to Glasgow to meet his family.

MSC Cruises reported his disappearance (as he was presumed overboard) on March 17th, when Euribia arrived in Hamburg.

The Scottish police notified his relatives about the occurrence on March 21st.

The incident occurred during the  7-day "Northern Europe Cruise" (itinerary March 15-22, roundtrip from Southampton, England UK) with call ports in Germany (Hamburg/Mar 17), Holland (Rotterdam/Mar 19), Belgium (Zeebrugge-Bruges/Mar 20), and France (Le Havre-Paris/Mar 21).

March 2023Other Incidents

The new ship's sea trials (originally scheduled to start on March 23, 2023) were delayed due to a series of union strikes in France against the Borne government's pension reform plan for increasing the retirement age from 62 to 64. The employees' nationwide spread refusal to work also affected the French ports including Saint-Nazaire's.

Note: The first strikes started on January 19th. In March 2023, the French government used the constitution's Article 49.3 to force the pension reform bill through the parliament, which sparked more protests.