A P&O cruise ship, the Britannia, was caught in a severe storm off the coast of Palma in Mallorca, resulting in a collision with an oil tanker. The incident occurred on Sunday as the ship was trying to ride out the storm, which had been battering the island with winds of 75mph and torrential rains. The storm had caused chaos on the island, blowing away sun loungers and causing general mayhem.
According to eyewitness Ricky Stubbs, who was on board the ship, the passengers were getting ready to disgo when the ship suddenly lurched and crashed into the oil tanker. “We were at the stairwell next to the sunset bar,” he recalled. “A loud crash came from the bar and the door flung open with people running in. Within seconds there was more crashing followed by chaos as people were trying to escape the onslaught of wind and rain.” The ship’s captain quickly announced over the speaker system that all guests should return to their cabins until further instructions.
Stubbs described the scene as “chaotic” with people running around, trying to escape the turmoil. “You could clearly see some had injuries due to either falling over or debris flying around, and people were distraught,” he said. The passengers were quickly ushered back to their cabins, where they were told they would be staying overnight while the ship’s damage was assessed.
P&O Britannia Collides with Oil Tanker During Storm Off Mallorca CoastDespite the chaos, Stubbs praised the ship’s captain and crew for how they handled the situation. “Huge respect for the captain and all the staff as they managed to stay calm and keep everyone updated,” he said. “The captain made announcements every 10-15 minutes once we were back in our cabins and they did a great job in a stressful situation.”
The £473m Britannia, which entered service in 2015, is the flagship of the P&O fleet. In a statement, P&O said that the ship had been affected by the severe weather and that one of its lifeboats had sustained structural issues and could not be repaired onboard. The ship is now required to return to Southampton with a reduced number of people onboard due to maritime regulations. A limited number of guests and crew will be leaving the ship and will be returned to their starting point by flight and transfer.