Mein Schiff 3 Collides With Cargo Ship in Bremerhaven

TUI Cruises' Mein Schiff 3 collided with an MSC container ship while departing Bremerhaven on Sunday, tearing a roughly ten-metre gash in the cargo vessel's hull and damaging the cruise ship, which reportedly lost several lifeboats in the impact. The cruise ship left the Columbuskaje around 5pm despite stormy weather, assisted by tugboats. Near the container terminal, strong gusts of wind are believed to have pushed the vessel off course, and the tugboats were unable to prevent the collision. A video circulating online shows tugs attempting to push the ship away before it struck the container vessel, with a woman heard saying the trip was likely over. Following the collision, Mein Schiff 3 returned to the Columbuskaje, where passengers and crew remain on board. The ship had been scheduled to depart on a 20-day voyage to the Canary Islands, but it remains unclear when the journey will now begin. TUI Cruises said in a statement to the German news agency DPA that, based on current information, there were no injuries, adding that further details would be released once confirmed. It was not immediately clear whether anyone aboard the MSC container ship was harmed, and neither company has released further details on the extent of the damage.