Adventure of a Lifetime

That’s what the brochures said, and that’s what the 100 passengers aboard the 250-ft ‘eco-cruise ship’ Explorer got. In a scenario way too close for comfort to the Titanic, the 2,400-ton Canadian Explorer hit ice and began sinking. The incident happened in the wee hours of November 23 during one of the ship’s regular runs to Antarctica — an increasingly popular cruise destination. Unlike on the Titanic, the crew maintained order and got all 100 passengers and 45 crew into lifeboats. They were later picked up by larger Norwegian cruise ship Nord-norge.

Although everyone had a good chill in the 20-degree air, no injuries whatsoever were reported in the incident. Explorer’s captain and mate stayed aboard for a time in a last-ditch effort to save the ship, but they, too, were eventually evacuated. The 40-year-old ship sank in 2,000 feet of water about 25 miles from King George Island in the South Shetlands. The irony was not lost on anyone that the unspoilt, pristine beauty they had paid $7,000 to $16,000 apiece to see is what did the ship in.