Greek authorities evacuated a tourist boat with more than 300 people aboard after it ran aground Thursday in choppy seas off the coast of Poros, an island near Athens. No injuries were reported.
The 278 passengers, mainly Japanese, American and Russian tourists, were evacuated by boat and transported to Poros before heading back to Piraeus, where they arrived later in the evening.
"Everyone is fine and in surprisingly good spirits," Poros Deputy Mayor Stamatina Mitsopoulou said.
There were also 35 crew members aboard the Giorgis, which had been on a one-day, three-island cruise.
"Nobody suffered a scratch and everything went very well. There was no panic and nobody was hurt," Poros Mayor Dimitris Stratigos said. "We were lucky, thank God."
Stratigos said divers were checking the damage to the boat, and added there had been no pollution from its fuel tanks. Officials at the company that owns the boat, Hydraiki Naval Company, were not immediately available for comment.
Three helicopters and a military transport plane, as well as coast guard vessels and more than a dozen other boats were involved in the rescue operation, said the Merchant Marine Ministry, which coordinates rescue operations at sea.
The ministry said 103 of the people on board were Japanese, while 58 were Americans and 56 were Russians. Others were from Spain, Canada, India, France, Brazil, Belgium and Australia.
Source: Xinhua/Agencies
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