Greg Mortimer (ship)

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Greg Mortimer IMO 9834648 P Antarctica 03-01-2020.jpg
Greg Mortimer off Antarctica in 2020
History
 Bahamas
NameGreg Mortimer
OwnerSunStone Ships
Operator
BuilderChina Merchants Heavy Industry, Jiangsu. China
Laid down12 June 2018
Launched12 March 2019
Christened6 September 2019
Identification
StatusIn service
General characteristics
TypeCruise ship
Tonnage7,892 GT
Length104.4 m (343 ft)
Beam18.4 m (60 ft)
Draft5.3 m (17 ft)
Decks8
Speed12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph)
Capacity126

Greg Mortimer is a cruise ship owned and operated by . The ship was named in honour of the company's founder Greg Mortimer, in a combined naming and delivery ceremony at CMHI's Haimen base on 6 September 2019.

Design and description[]

The ship is a 104 m (341 ft 2 in) expedition ship with a state of the art x-bow design which has a piercing effect on smaller waves, making for a smoother ride. It has 80 cabins.[1]

Construction and career[]

The ship was named after the Australian mountaineer, polar explorer and founder of Aurora Expeditions, Greg Mortimer.[2] Mortimer arguably became best known as one of the first two Australians (with Tim Macartney-Snape) to successfully climb Mount Everest, on 3 October 1984.[3]

COVID-19 pandemic[]

Main article: COVID-19 pandemic on cruise ships § Greg Mortimer

On 7 April 2020, the cruise ship, which holds up to 216 passengers,[4] became stranded in South American waters, asking for help after people exhibited symptoms such as fever, which prompted authorities to ban them from disembarking.[5] Uruguay was the only country which allowed the cruise ship to dock, after Uruguayan medical teams boarded the cruise ship to test passengers on 1 April, 81 people tested positive for COVID-19. Six people found seriously ill with coronavirus were evacuated and transferred to a hospital in Montevideo.[6]

The ship received permission to dock and Uruguayan authorities arranged an evacuation flight to Australia and New Zealand. By that time 128 persons on the vessel had tested positive for COVID-19. Six had transferred to a hospital in Montevideo. Passengers from Europe and America who had positive tests would not be allowed to travel to their home countries until their subsequent tests indicated negative results.[7] On the night of 10 April some passengers were evacuated in order to fly to Australia.[8] On 18 April, a 52-year-old Filipino crewman died of the coronavirus.[9]

References[]

  1. ^ "Greg Mortimer". polarroutes.co.uk. Retrieved 8 April 2020.
  2. ^ "Greg Mortimer". Talking Heads with Peter Morrison. ABC. 5 October 2009. Archived from the original on 1 June 2011. Retrieved 8 April 2020.
  3. ^ Hall, Lincoln & Weldon, Kevin (1985). White Limbo: The First Australian Climb of Mt Everest. Sydney, Australia.
  4. ^ Compare: "Greg Mortimer Expedition Ship Features". Aurora Expeditions. 2020. Retrieved 12 April 2020. Accommodating an average of 126 passengers per voyage, the Greg Mortimer has redefined expedition cruising for the future.
  5. ^ Blakkarly, Jarni (6 April 2020). "Greg Mortimer: 81 people test positive for COVID-19 on Australian cruise ship off Uruguay". SBS News. Retrieved 8 April 2020.
  6. ^ Noyes, Jenny (6 April 2020). "More than 80 passengers on board Greg Mortimer cruise ship test positive for COVID-19". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 8 April 2020.
  7. ^ Griffiths, James & Castillo, Jackie (8 April 2020). "Passengers to be evacuated from Antarctic cruise ship after almost 60% test positive for coronavirus". CNN. Retrieved 8 April 2020.
  8. ^ "Uruguay Evacuates 112 Australians, New Zealanders From Ship". The New York Times. 10 April 2020.
  9. ^ "AKLANON SEAMAN, NAMATAY SA COVID-19". Radyo Todo. 18 April 2020.

External links[]

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