A total of 154 on board a luxury cruiseliner which sank after hitting an iceberg in the Antarctic Ocean were rescued on Friday.

 

The stricken Explorer is now listing at 45 degrees near the South Shetland Islands, off the Argentinian coast, Sky news reported.

 

The MV Explorer, formerly the Lindblad Explorer, is pictured in an undated handout photo.

 

The 100 passengers and 54 crew were evacuated on lifeboats and after enduring temperatures of minor 5 degree Celsius. Among them were 24 British, four Irish, 14 Americans, 12 Canadians and 10 Australians.

 

They were then ferried to cruiseship the Nord Norge, which was one of five boats sent to the scene, before sending back to Port Ushuaia, Argentina.

 

Nord Norge captain Arnvid Hansen said, "Everybody is in a good position. People are cold but there is no hypothermia."

 

Two crew stayed on board for a time to pump out water from the Explorer, which suffered a 25cm by 10cm rupture in its hull after hitting the iceberg. The cruiseliner is expected to sink into the 2,000 feet depths.

 

Passengers and crew evacuated from a sinking cruiseliner were being picked up from their lifeboats after another cruise ship arrived on the scene, an English coastguard spokesman has said.

 

The Explorer, which set out from Ushuaia on the southern tip of Argentina on Nov. 11 for a 19-day trip through Drake Passage, is owned and chartered by Canada-based Gap Adventures.

 

The vessel, one of the best-known specialist cruise ships in the world, has run aground before in Antarctica. It grounded on rocks off Weincke Island in December 1979.

 

 

 

 

(Xinhua News Agency November 24, 2007)