In The News
Queen Victoria Hits Quay In Malta
By Sky News
May 15, 2008, 05:53

By Sky News SkyNews - Wednesday, May 14 05:14 pm

The Cunard cruise ship Queen Victoria has been damaged after hitting a quay while docking in Malta.

None of the 1,887 passengers were hurt in the incident at Valletta, one of the stops on a 14-night Mediterranean cruise.

The stern of the 90,000-tonne vessel was dented and repairs are being carried out overnight.

An investigation is underway to find out why the ship struck the quay.

Sky viewers emailed pictures of the ship's damage as well as damage to the quay.

"The ship was being turned to face the breakwater and hit the Valletta Waterfront quay with its stern," one eyewitness said. "It was a loud, scraping noise."

A spokesman for Cunard said: "Repairs are underway and will be completed during the night delaying the ship's departure.

"This will necessitate the cancellation of the call at La Goulette, Tunisia, which the ship was due to visit.

"But the call to Gibraltar on May 17 will be going ahead as planned. Cunard will be compensating guests for the disruption."

Peter Shenks, senior vice-president of Cunard Europe, said the cost of the collision was not yet known.

The vessel set sail from Southampton on May 6 and is due to return there on May 20.

It was named last December by the Duchess of Cornwall at a ceremony in which the champagne bottle did not break first time - which is considered an ill omen.

Of the 1,887 passengers, 1,581 are from the UK. The vessel is carrying 1,024 crew.