THURSDAY: Cruise ship runs aground in Virginia with 66 aboard; passengers evacuate into smaller boats (12:19 p.m.)

November 8, 2007

Anonymous The Tonawanda News Thu Nov 08, 2007, 12:20 PM EST

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (AP) _ A captain ran a small cruise ship with 66 people aboard aground in an isolated stretch of the Intracoastal Waterway early Thursday after it began taking on water, the U.S. Coast Guard said.

The captain wanted to keep the 207-foot ship from sinking, Lt. Chris White said. There were no reports of injuries.

Two 41-foot Coast Guard boats were transporting the ship's passengers and crew to a ferry landing about 2 miles away from the rural area off Virginia Beach, Petty Officer Christopher Evanson said.

"The situation is pretty serious ... but nobody's life is at risk right now," Evanson said.

The cruise ship was lodged in mud about 9 feet below the water's surface. The ship was only about 100 feet from shore, but the surrounding area is a wooded swamp, Evanson said.

Passengers ate breakfast as they awaited rescue, he said.

The Coast Guard received a report about the ship at about 6 a.m. It wasn't clear why the ship began taking on water. A Coast Guard helicopter lowered pumps onto the boat to help remove the water.

The boat, The Spirit of Nantucket, was on a 10-day cruise from Alexandria, Va., to Charleston, S.C., Evanson said.

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