Silver Spirit accidents and incidents

18 October 2023Propulsion / Power Loss

In the early morning of October 18, 2023, while en route from Nafplio to Piraeus-Athens, the ship reported mechanical issues and requested assistance from the Greek maritime authorities.

While en route from Port Nafplio to Piraeus, approximately 7.5 NM (14 km / 9 mi) southeast of Aegina Island (near Athens), the ship's Master (Captain Gennaro Arma) issued a distress call after the left main engine failed/sustained damage. In response, the Greek Coastguard dispatched two tugboats to assist the cruiser in mooring at Port Piraeus.

Assisted by the tugboats, Silver Spirit reached Piraeus at ~6:30 AM (~3:30 UTC).

The ship was carrying a total of 985 people (581 passengers plus 404 crew). No injuries were reported.

The accident occurred at the end of the 7-day "Greece and Turkey Cruise" (itinerary October 11-18, roundtrip from Piraeus-Athens) visiting Santorini Island, Kusadasi-Ephesus, Mykonos Island, Rhodes Island, Chania (Crete Island) and Nafplio-Mycenae.

August 2020Cruise Illness / Virus Outbreaks

Beginning August 27, 2020, Silversea Cruises chartered Silver Spirit for 2 months to Red Sea Cruises - company owned by Saudi Arabia's PIF (Public Investment Fund). PIF is among the world's largest sovereign wealth funds with total estimated assets (as 2020) USD 382 billion.

For Red Sea Cruises, Silver Spirit was scheduled to operate 3- and 4-day roundtrips from King Abdullah Port (Kingdom's newest cargo port) targeting Saudi Arabia residents only. The ship charter was part of the Kingdom's "Saudi Summer" campaign encouraging residents to explore their country. For the campaign, Saudi Tourism Authority partnered with the Ministry of Health, local tour operators and other parties for implementing strict health and safety measures for the unique "homeland" voyages.

(Coronavirus) On August 29, the TV channel Al Arabia reported a suspected COVID-19 case (female passenger). The woman was isolated onboard. The ship departed from Port King Abdullah on Aug 27 and was scheduled to end the voyage on Aug 30. However, due to the Coronavirus alert, the ship returned back to homeport one day earlier (Aug 29). Neither the vessel nor its passengers were quarantined upon arrival.

The cruise ship carried 450 passengers (departed at 75% capacity). According to other sources, the suspected case was not a passenger but a crew (reportedly a DJ contracted by Red Sea Cruises). All crew tests (done before the voyage) returned negative. Reportedly, right before the August 27 departure, the woman visited a family member and soon (onboard) started to exhibit flu-like symptoms which she reported to Infirmary. All passengers were informed about the suspected infection and asked to stay in their staterooms. Reportedly, a total of 14 crew were also suspected of COVID-19 and quarantined onboard. On August 29, they all were disembarked and tested at a hospital. The woman tested positive, the other crew tested negative. After arrival in Port King Abdullah, all crew remained quarantined on the ship and on September 9 were tested for Coronavirus. The next departure was planned for September 13.

27 November 2018Ship Collision / Allision

On November 27, 2018, upon leaving call port Key West FL, due to heavy winds, the liner collided with The Fisherman Wharf (at Mallory Square). The ship departed the berth at ~6:30 pm and started to turn around when strong winds stopped it and pushed it back towards the dock.

The crash resulted in minor hull damages and no injuries, but the concrete structure sustained damage that left the cruise berth unusable (remained closed until May 2019). Berth damages were estimated ~USD 500-750,000. Silversea agreed to pay for the repairs plus ~USD 50,000 reimbursement (for not-received passenger fees). During the 5-month restoration period, cruise ships in Key West docked at the other two berths - Outer Mole Pier (Truman Waterfront Park) and Margaritaville Resort (near Mallory Square).

The accident occurred during the 5-day Caribbean cruise (itinerary Nov 23-28) from San Juan (Puerto Rico) to Fort Lauderdale, visiting Samana (Dominican Republic) and Key West FL.

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

March 2016Cruise Illness / Virus Outbreaks

March 2016, CDC reported that on itinerary March 3 to 21, an E.-coli (ETEC) illness outbreak infected 24 passengers (out of 388, or 6,2%) and 13 crew (out of 366, or 3,6%). All sick suffered from Enterotoxigenic symptoms (vomiting, diarrhoea).

The ship was on an 18-day repositioning cruise from Valparaiso-Santiago (Chile) to Fort Lauderdale (Florida USA).