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Photos: Death toll from Chinese cruise ship disaster jumps to 431

The death toll from the Chinese cruise ship that overturned in the Yangtze River with hundreds of people aboard earlier this week jumped to 431 people on Sunday.

11 people were still missing less than a week after The Eastern Star, which was carrying 456 people, capsized during a storm. Only 14 survivors, including the captain, were found.

An aerial view shows rescue workers searching on the sunken ship at Jianli section of Yangtze River, Hubei province, China, June 2, 2015. Very little of the ship is visible and most of it is immersed deep into the muddy waters, making rescue efforts very difficult. Stringer/Reuters

A rescue team works on lifting the capsized cruise ship Eastern Star in the Jianli section of Yangtze River, Hubei province, China, June 5, 2015. The ship eventually resumed a floating position once the water drained out of its cabins. Kim Kyung-Hoon/Reuters

The ship was successfully lifted from the water late Friday evening, allowing the water to drain from its cabins and returning the vessel to floating position. Once upright, the decks were again walkable, making further exploration easier and more efficient for the rescuers.

Rescue workers enter the now floating cruise ship Eastern Star on the Yangtze River, Jianli, Hubei province, June 6, 2015. CNSphoto/Reuters

Rescue workers prepare to enter the salvaged cruise ship Eastern Star on the Yangtze River, Jianli, Hubei province, June 6, 2015. CNSphoto/Reuters

The rescue operation for the catastrophe — one of China’s deadliest maritime accidents in decades — has been strong and persistent, with 150 other ships, 59 machines, more than 3,400 Chinese troops and 1,700 parliamentary personnel supporting with efforts, Reuters reported .

A family member of a passenger aboard the capsized ship Eastern Star cries during the government’s daily briefing in Jianli, Hubei province, China, June 6, 2015. Kim Kyung-Hoon/Reuters

Still, families continued to demand answers regarding the details of the sinking, as hope for finding more survivors remained dim.

Family members of passengers of the capsized cruise ship burn incense and pray by the riverside in Jianli, Hubei province, China, June 6, 2015. Stringer/Reuters

A girl lights a candle at a candlelight vigil to pay respect to the passengers of the sunken cruise ship Eastern Star on the Yangtze River, at a public square in Jianli, Hubei province, China, June 5, 2015. Aly Song/Reuters

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With over 440 expected dead, the Yangtze river cruise sinking is China’s worst boating disaster

Chinese rescuers do not expect to find any more survivors from a capsized cruise boat on the Yangtze River. The death toll is expected to reach over 440 people, which makes the sinking the deadliest maritime incident during peacetime in China’s history.

On Friday, emergency responders righted the overturned Eastern Star  yacht that had been floating in the river in Hubei province since Monday evening, after sinking during a storm. Rescuers had initially heard voices of those trapped inside from the overturned hull of the ship, but only 14 people out of 456 passengers on board have been rescued. So far, 97 bodies have been recovered.

Rescuers had been carefully cutting holes into the hull, afraid of causing the ship to lose buoyancy and sink further , Chinese officials said. They had delayed righting the ship in hopes of extricating more survivors. On Thursday, China’s transport ministry spokesman said that the “overall judgment is that there is no chance of people being alive.”

The last time China experienced as many casualties in a maritime incident was at the tail end of the civil war between the communists and nationalists. In January 1949, a steamboat of Chinese refugees fleeing the mainland for Taiwan sank, killing over 1500 people. In 1999, 280 people were killed when their ferry in the Bohai bay in northeastern China caught fire and capsized.

The accident is China’s worst maritime disaster not just for its death toll. Attempts at empathy from government officials have come off orchestrated and stilted , and propaganda authorities have ordered Chinese media to  focus on the “positive part” of the story, while censoring online discussion and questions about the rescue effort.

The relatives of passengers on board, many of them elderly tourists, are growing angrier by the day at a lack of answers from the government. Some say they have been  beaten by police for asking for information. Chinese officials have been slow to explain why the boat continued into a storm when other vessels heeded weather warnings and stopped. An official passenger list has not been released, nor have officials given the names of the rescued victims. So far, 1,200 people have converged on the rescue site , demanding answers.

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Hundreds Missing After Chinese Cruise Ship Sinks on Yangtze

By Edward Wong

• June 1, 2015

BEIJING — Most of the 458 people aboard a chartered cruise ship in China were still missing on Tuesday morning, more than a dozen hours after the vessel sank during a torrential rainstorm along the central Yangtze River, according to a report by Xinhua, the state news agency.

Just 13 people had been rescued, local news media reported, making this perhaps the worst passenger maritime disaster in East Asia since the sinking of the South Korean ferry Sewol last year.

The water where the boat sank is about 50 feet deep. Rescuers could hear the sounds of people trapped inside, according to a Twitter post by China Central Television, the main state network. The ship, whose name translates as Oriental Star, was crossing Hubei Province in the middle of the country when it sank at 9:28 p.m. on Monday, Xinhua reported, citing the Yangtze River Navigation Administration. Rescue work was hampered by strong winds and heavy rain.

Most of the passengers were 50 to 80 years old and had been traveling on a group tour, according to Hubei Daily. The newspaper reported that one body, which appeared to be that of a tour guide, had been discovered. Hundreds of soldiers and police and paramilitary officers were on the scene. More than 100 boats and divers were also there, the newspaper reported. The ship had capsized, with part of the hull above the surface of the water.

Prime Minister Li Keqiang arrived Tuesday, Xinhua reported. News organizations reported that Xi Jinping, the country’s president and Communist Party leader, had “issued important instructions immediately” to direct rescue operations, an indication of how seriously the party regarded the accident.

The captain and an engineer were detained by the police, Xinhua reported on one of its social media accounts, citing the river administration authorities. The report did not say why they were being held, or whether that was a routine procedure in the investigation.

According to Xinhua, the authorities learned of the disaster after several survivors swam to shore and alerted them. At least eight people were reported to have been hospitalized.

The Chinese Navy was sending a contingent of more than 140 divers to the site of the capsized ship, the Twitter account of the state-run People’s Daily reported. People’s Daily also reported that a 65-year-old woman had been rescued early Tuesday afternoon, more than 15 hours after the ferry sank. It was not clear where she had been found. People’s Daily originally reported that the woman was 85 years old.

The ship had been hired by the Shanghai Xiehe Tourism Agency to carry hundreds of retirees on a multiday trip along a long, scenic stretch of the Yangtze. A handwritten sign posted on the company’s door on Tuesday said the head of the company had gone to the scene. A mobile number scrawled on the sheet was busy throughout Tuesday morning.

Some relatives of the passengers were furious that they learned about the accident through news reports and not directly from the travel agency, according to a report by The Paper, an investigative news organization.

The people on board included five employees from one or more travel agencies and 47 crew members.

The vessel sank in Jianli County in Hubei Province. It was sailing between two of China’s largest cities, from Nanjing, the capital of Jiangsu Province, on the east coast, to Chongqing, an interior metropolis. That journey takes several days.

Both the captain and the chief engineer, who were questioned separately by the police, said the ship was suddenly struck by a tornado and capsized, Xinhua reported.

In Chinese, the term for tornado, longjuanfeng, is used more loosely than Americans use its English equivalent. One report in a Chinese newspaper said that a “tornado,” with winds of about 50 miles per hour, had struck the area around the time the ship was reported to have capsized. Winds of that strength are associated with twisters near or below the lowest rung on the six-level scale used in the United States to measure tornadoes.

The ship’s passengers were largely from relatively wealthy areas of eastern China, according to Hubei Daily. The newspaper said 204 passengers were from Jiangsu Province, 97 from Shanghai, 11 from Zhejiang Province, 43 from Tianjin, 23 from Shandong Province, 19 from Fujian and eight from Anhui, for a total of 405. Xinhua gave the total passenger count as 406.

One resident of Shanghai wrote in a microblog post that he had lost contact with his father, Zhang Yuming, and his uncle, both on the tour. He said both men had taken a bus from the Shanghai Grand Theater on May 28 to Nanjing to board the ship.

The ship was built in February 1994 and was capable of carrying 534 people, Xinhua reported. The ship is owned by the Chongqing Oriental Ferry Company. The company is state owned and reported to be deeply in debt. Last year the company reported assets of about $14.5 million and liabilities of more than twice that amount, or $29.8 million, according to records filed with the government.

The accident is certain to catalyze public calls for investigations into both the company and the government officials who oversee safety regulations and boat traffic along the Yangtze. Ordinary Chinese believe that corruption among local officials is rampant, and the Communist Party has made rooting out corruption a priority. In recent years, passenger ship services have come under scrutiny in some countries following deadly accidents.

The Yangtze, the world’s third-longest river, is China’s most important waterway. Tourists often take pleasure cruises along the middle stretch. Those cruises are focused on the area called the Three Gorges, where vertiginous canyon walls rise from the waters and are often shrouded in mist. That section is also the site of the world’s largest hydropower project, the Three Gorges Dam, located in Hubei Province.

The section of the Yangtze in Hubei is also the starting point of the middle route of China’s most ambitious water engineering project, the South-North Water Diversion . A series of canals runs 800 miles from a reservoir at Danjiangkou to the area around Beijing, carrying water to northern China, which is in the midst of a chronic drought. Many farmers were forced to abandon their villages during the construction of that project.

In January, a tugboat sank while on a test voyage in the eastern section of the Yangtze. Twenty-two people died in that accident.

The Sewol tilted and sank off South Korea’s southwestern tip in April 2014, killing more than 300 people on board , most of them high school students. The captain, Lee Jun-seok, and key members of his crew fled the boat as it went down. In the aftermath of that disaster, ordinary Koreans criticized government officials and the executives who ran the private ferry company. Investigators found that the ship had violated many regulations, including carrying twice its legal weight limit.

Michael Forsythe contributed reporting from Hong Kong, and Kiki Zhao, Mia Li and Adam Wu contributed research from Beijing.

China River Cruise Ship Capsize: Death Toll Jumps to 400

Disaster teams searched the Yangtze River on Saturday for dozens of bodies of the Eastern Star's missing passengers and crew, as the death toll in the cruiser's capsizing rose to nearly 400, making it China's deadliest boat disaster in nearly seven decades.

Authorities have attributed the overturning of the ship late Monday to sudden, severe winds, but also have placed the captain and his first engineer under police custody.

Passengers' relatives have raised questions about whether the ship should have continued its cruise after the storm started in a section of Hubei province and despite a weather warning earlier in the evening.

Gallery: Crews Search Capsized Ship

Heavy rains in the Yangtze area over four days beginning Monday have killed 15 people and left eight others missing, the Ministry of Civil Affairs said.

Hundreds more bodies from the Eastern Star were found overnight and Saturday, bringing the death toll to 396, Hu Kaihong, the vice director-general of the press bureau of the State Council Information Office, told a news conference. A total of 46 people were still missing, and authorities had requested that river traffic and others along the river alert them if they noticed any floating bodies.

Hu said that they were increasing their efforts to search for the missing and had expanded the target area from the middle reaches of the Yangtze more than 600 miles downstream to Shanghai.

The boat had more than 450 people aboard, many of them elderly tourists, for a cruise from Nanjing to the southwestern city of Chongqing.

Fourteen people survived, including three pulled out by divers from air pockets in the overturned hull on Tuesday.

RELATED: China Ship Disaster: Is 'Outstanding' Captain Culpable?

Disaster teams put chains around the hull and used cranes to roll the banged-up, white and blue boat upright and then gradually lift it out of the gray currents of the Yangtze on Friday.

The Eastern Star disaster became the country's worst since the sinking of the SS Kiangya off Shanghai in 1948, which is believed to have killed anywhere from 2,750 to nearly 4,000 people.

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Death toll jumps to 65 after China river cruise capsize as rescuers slice hull

Rescuers cut into upside-down hull of capsized Eastern Star in the Yangtze river, which a maritime agency found was cited for safety violations in 2013

Rescuers cut into the upside-down hull of a river cruise ship and pulled out 39 drowned passengers early on Thursday, bringing the death toll to 65 since the Eastern Star capsized on Monday night in the Yangtze river with more than 450 people aboard.

The Chinese state broadcaster, CCTV, said rescuers had used a crane to stabilise the ship and planned to cut into at least one other part of the hull.

Authorities say at least 14 people survived, some by jumping from the ship moments after a heavy storm sank it and swimming or drifting ashore. Three survivors were pulled by divers from air pockets inside the overturned hull on Tuesday after rescuers heard their yells for help.

The sudden overturning of the Eastern Star is on track to become the country’s deadliest maritime disaster in seven decades, and Chinese authorities have launched a high-profile response but have tightly controlled media coverage.

The premier, Li Keqiang, travelled to the disaster site in the Hubei province county of Jianli, where he urged “all-out”, around-the-clock efforts. But most of those on board remain missing. Many were elderly tourists on a cruise from Nanjing to the south-western city of Chongqing.

Records from a maritime agency show the capsized ship was cited for safety violations two years ago. Authorities in Nanjing held the ship and five other Yangtze cruise vessels after it found them violating standards during a safety inspection campaign in 2013, according to a report on the city’s maritime safety website. It did not specify the Eastern Star’s violations.

The shallow-draft boat, which was not designed to withstand heavy winds as an ocean-going vessel can, overturned in what Chinese weather authorities have called a cyclone with winds up to 130km/h (80mph).

“The river ships tend to have a lower standard on wind-resistance and wave-resistance than ocean ships,” Zhong Shoudao, president of the Chongqing boat design institute, said at a news conference with weather and transportation ministry officials.

“Under the special circumstance of cyclone, the pressure on the one side of the boat went beyond the standard it was designed for, resulting in the overturning of the boat.

“The boat had lifejackets and lifeboats, but due to the sudden capsizing, there was not enough time for people to put on lifejackets or for the signals to be sent out.”

More than 200 divers were working in shifts almost around-the-clock. The last survivor was found on Tuesday afternoon.

A transport ministry spokesman, Xu Chengguang, said divers would search the ship for as long as possible.

“Until all hope is lost and more accurate information becomes available, we will not give up on our final efforts, although I know that our colleagues at the scene are facing a great many difficulties,” Xu said.

Access to the site was blocked by police and paramilitary troops stationed along the Yangtze embankment, and local Communist party officials and the foreign ministry organised a boat trip for about four dozen journalists to a spot about 100 or 200 metres from the overturned hull.

The rescue and salvage efforts are being run from a massive barge tethered a few kilometres upstream of the wreckage. Reached through a watery wasteland of flooded crops and trees torn in half by high winds, it was a hive of activity where rescuers, paramilitary troops and army and navy specialists arrived and left by smaller boat.

The survivors included the ship’s captain and chief engineer, both of whom have been taken into police custody. Some relatives have asked whether everything was done to ensure passengers’ safety and have demanded help from officials in Nanjing and Shanghai in unruly scenes that have drawn a heavy police response.

CCTV said most of the passengers were aged between 50 and 80.

The Eastern Star was 76.5 metres (251 feet) long and 11 metres (36 feet) wide, and could carry a maximum of 534 people. It is owned by the Chongqing Eastern Shipping Corp, which focuses on tourism routes in the popular Three Gorges river canyon region. The company could not be reached for comment.

China’s deadliest maritime disaster in recent decades was when the Dashun ferry caught fire and capsized off Shandong province in November 1999, killing about 280.

With 65 dead and more than 370 people still missing, the Eastern Star disaster could become China’s deadliest since the sinking of the SS Kiangya off Shanghai in 1948, which is believed to have killed between 2,750 and nearly 4,000.

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Defunct 1950s-era cruise ship takes on water and leaks pollutants in California river delta

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A containment boom has been placed around a defunct 1950s-era cruise ship that began sinking and leaking pollution in California’s Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, authorities said.

The 294-foot (90-meter) ship permanently moored in Little Potato Slough northwest of the city of Stockton began to sink in 13 feet (4 meters) of water on Wednesday, the U.S. Coast Guard said in a statement.

A sheen was observed on the water, and containment booms were deployed around the vessel and the city’s water intake pump station, the Coast Guard said. Photographs show the stern low in the water next to the slough’s grassy embankment.

It was not immediately clear what was leaking. The Coast Guard said the vessel recently changed ownership, so details about what pollutants were on board were unknown. The San Joaquin County Sheriff’s Office said the ship was leaking diesel fuel and oil.

A wildlife care organization was notified, but no oiled wildlife had been observed, the Coast Guard said.

The ship, currently known as the MV Aurora, was built in Germany in 1955 and formerly named Wappen von Hamburg. The ship moved around the world and ended up in the delta when a California man bought it in 2008 with dreams of restoring it as a shoreline attraction.

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LOS ANGELES (May 30, 2024) – Viking® ( www.viking.com ) (NYSE: VIK) today is celebrating the start of its third season in the Great Lakes, with both of its identical expedition ships, the Viking Octantis ® and the Viking Polaris ®, now deployed in the region. Voted #1 for Expeditions by Condé Nast Traveler in the most recent Readers’ Choice Awards, Viking offers a variety of itineraries that operate between Toronto and Duluth and explore all five Great Lakes. The 378-guest expeditions vessels, which were designed specifically to transit the historic Welland Canal, will remain in the lakes until early October before returning to Antarctica for the austral summer.

Viking has also announced that two new itineraries in the Great Lakes for 2026 are now open for booking. The 10-day Great Lakes Treasures voyage will sail roundtrip from Milwaukee and will allow guests to explore new ports of call for Viking, including Chicago, as well as Canada’s Fathom Five National Marine Park and Benjamin Islands. The longer, 17-day Niagara & Great Lakes Treasures voyage sails between Toronto and Milwaukee and also includes Niagara Falls, Canada’s Point Pelee National Park and a transit of the Welland Canal.

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• Great Lakes Collection (15 days; between Toronto – Duluth) – Join Viking for a unique voyage across the historic waterways of all five of the majestic Great Lakes. Experience culture-rich urban centers and admire the awesome power of thundering Niagara Falls. Explore the granite islands and sheltered inlets of Georgian Bay and traverse the famous Soo Locks. Study the aquatic ecosystems of the lakes as you journey and venture into the dense boreal forests that line the shores of Lake Superior and Lake Michigan.
• Niagara & the Great Lakes (8 days; between Toronto – Milwaukee) – From urban skylines to uninhabited islands, discover North America’s wilderness alongside renowned cultural attractions while cruising the striking waterways of the Great Lakes. Immerse yourself in the lakes’ compelling shipping history, experience the power of the thundering Niagara Falls and keep watch for scores of migratory birds at Point Pelee. Led by a team of experts, explore sheltered bays and woodlands to uncover complex ecosystems and hidden treasures.
• Undiscovered Great Lakes (8 days; Thunder Bay – Milwaukee) – Cross the width of Lake Superior between Duluth and the Soo Locks, exploring the lake’s North Shore Inside Passage as you sail. Hike along clifftop trails for sweeping views of the lake. Gain insight into the unique features and ecosystems of remote wilderness islands, and admire Kakabeka Falls, the “Niagara of the North.” Follow in the footsteps of fur traders in Duluth and step back in time as you stroll the quaint, car-free streets of Mackinac Island.
• Canada & East Coast Explorer (15 days; between Toronto – Fort Lauderdale) – Sail the US’s Atlantic coastline and visit storied cities. Enjoy Charleston’s southern charm and colonial homes. Visit Norfolk, home to the world’s largest naval base. Trace Nova Scotia’s shores to explore its rugged landscapes and visit Quebec’s national parks. Traverse one of North America’s scenic waterways, the St. Lawrence River, and marvel at the locks and canals that comprise the St. Lawrence Seaway on an enriching journey to historic ports.

Viking is also offering a variety of Longitudinal World Cruises between the Great Lakes and Antarctica, offering guests the opportunity of a lifetime to sail from the world’s largest freshwater system to “the end of the world” or the reverse. Additionally, all of Viking’s Great Lakes voyages feature Mackinac Island, which was recently rated the #1 summer travel destination in the U.S. by USA Today 10Best .

Viking Expedition Ships

The Polar Class, Viking Octantis and Viking Polaris host 378 guests in 189 staterooms. These vessels are built for expeditions, at an ideal size for safety and comfort in remote destinations. With more indoor and outdoor viewing areas than other expedition vessels, guests are as close as possible to the most magnificent scenery on earth. Highlights include:

• The Aula: A stunning panoramic auditorium inspired by the University of Oslo’s famed ceremonial hall, the former venue for the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony. Used for lectures, daily briefings, documentaries and films, this spectacular venue features a 4k laser-projected screen that retracts to expose floor-to-ceiling windows and 270° views.
• Finse Terrace: An outdoor lounge area just above sea level with recessed seating, the Finse Terrace was designed to allow guests the comforts of the ship al fresco while enjoying the dramatic scenery. Named after the Finse Plateau in Norway, where some of the greatest polar explorers, including Nansen and Amundsen, did their expedition training in preparation for their North and South Pole expeditions.
• The Hangar: A state-of-the-art, industry-first in-ship marina providing ease of embarkation and disembarkation of Special Operations Boats and other equipment while sheltered from the elements.
• The Bow: An important forward-viewing platform. And in the case of inclement weather, The Shelter is a comfortable, partially enclosed space for guests to warm up with a hot drink before going back out into the elements.
• The Science Lab: Developed in partnership with the University of Cambridge and Akvaplan-Niva, The Science Lab, at 380 sq. ft., is designed to support a broad range of research activities and is equipped with wet and dry laboratory facilities. Guests have supervised access to The Science Lab to learn from and participate with scientists in undertaking meaningful research.
• Expedition Central: The hub for the expedition team to consult with guests on their expedition activities and share knowledge about the destinations on a one-on-one basis, with the aid of 3D printed maps, digital screens, and a state-of-the-art spatial data visualization chart table.
• Dining Choices: The Restaurant offers fine dining featuring regional cuisine and always-available classics; the casual World Café offers an open kitchen, bakery, grill and premium seafood and sushi choices, as well as a wide range of international flavors; Mamsen’s, named for the Hagen family matriarch, serves Scandinavian-inspired fare; and Manfredi’s offers the best of Italian cuisine.
• The Nordic Spa: Following a day of exploration, The Nordic Spa offers guests opportunities to experience the ultimate healthy Nordic traditions, with an indoor heated pool set against expansive windows and a badestamp (wood-sided hot tub) that is open to the outside.
• Explorers’ Lounge: Located high on the ship with floor-to-ceiling windows, the Explorers’ Lounge provides guests an ideal space to take in the magnificent scenery, share discoveries with fellow travelers or to enjoy a drink.
• The Living Room: On the Viking Octantis and the Viking Polaris , The Living Room is located to maximize views of the surroundings through floor-to-ceiling windows and a library that informs even the best-read explorers. The Library is curated by acclaimed London bookshop Heywood Hill, as on all Viking vessels, as well as Cambridge University’s Scott Polar Research Institute.
• Nordic Balcony: A first for polar expedition vessels, all staterooms on board Viking’s expedition ships feature a Nordic Balcony, a sunroom that converts into an al fresco viewing platform with an observation shelf at elbow level to stabilize binoculars or a camera. Guests can choose from six stateroom categories that range from 222 sq. ft. to 1,223 sq. ft.—all with a Nordic Balcony, as well as a king-size bed and large bathroom with spacious glass-enclosed shower, heated bathroom floor and anti-fog mirror. Every stateroom is also equipped with a unique floor-to-ceiling drying closet that circulates warm air to dry and store clothing and expedition gear.
• Expedition Ship Suites: Nordic Junior Suites (322 sq. ft.) and Explorer Suites (580 sq. ft.) on the Viking Octantis and the Viking Polaris are similar to those on Viking’s fleet of ocean ships, with wood detailing and amenities that include additional storage and seating, an expanded bathroom with extended shower and double sinks, welcome champagne, a fully-stocked mini-bar replenished daily, complimentary laundry, priority restaurant reservations and more. Explorer Suites feature two separate rooms, a Nordic Balcony and a full outdoor veranda. Additionally, each ship features one Owner’s Suite (1,223 sq. ft.) that has three rooms –a living room, a board/dining room and a bedroom—as well as a 792 sq. ft. private deck with a traditional Norwegian badestamp open to the invigorating outdoors.
• Enrichment On Board and On Shore: Viking has created the world’s leading scientific enrichment environment in an expedition setting. Exclusive partnerships with the Scott Polar Research Institute at Cambridge University, The Cornell Lab of Ornithology and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)—as well as other prestigious scientific institutions match leading researchers and educators with each expedition. Thirty-six experts accompany each journey as part of the Viking Expedition Team, including an Expedition Leader and support staff, photographer, field research scientists, general naturalists, mountain guides, kayak guides, submarine pilots and specialists (ornithology, geology, higher predator biology and history). On board, guests enjoy daily briefings and world-class lectures about their destination. On shore, they can assist in fieldwork or interact through experiential activities during landings—such as monitoring birds to help identify migratory patterns; accompanying scientists to collect samples; or taking their cameras ashore alongside a professional photographer to learn how best to capture scenic landscapes.
• Environmentally Considerate: Viking believes that its responsibility extends beyond providing exceptional travel experiences. From the outset, the company has been deliberately concerned about the environment, making decisions that it believes are scientifically correct, rather than what is deemed as politically correct. Viking’s fleet boasts many environmentally friendly features, such as diesel-electric river ships and energy-efficient ocean vessels equipped with closed-loop exhaust scrubbers. Viking’s expedition ships have set a new standard for responsible travel by exceeding the current International Maritime Organization (IMO) Energy Efficiency Design Index (EEDI) requirements by nearly 38%. Additionally, Viking is working to make its next generation of ocean ships even more environmentally friendly, with a project for a partial hybrid propulsion system of liquid hydrogen and fuel cells, which could allow for operation with zero emissions while in port and while traveling at low speeds.

With a clear focus on creating experiences for The Thinking Person, Viking does not try to be all things to all people. This approach has resonated with guests, and in 2023, Viking was rated #1 for Expeditions, as well as #1 for Rivers and #1 for Oceans by Condé Nast Traveler in the most recent Readers’ Choice Awards.

Media Assets

For more information about Viking, or for images and b-roll, please contact [email protected] .

About Viking

Viking (NYSE: VIK) was founded in 1997 and provides destination-focused journeys on rivers, oceans and lakes around the world. Designed for curious travelers with interests in science, history, culture and cuisine, Chairman Torstein Hagen often says Viking offers experiences for The Thinking Person™. Viking has more than 450 awards to its name, including being rated #1 for Rivers, #1 for Oceans and #1 for Expeditions by Condé Nast Traveler in the 2023 Readers’ Choice Awards. Viking is also rated at the top of its categories for rivers, oceans and expeditions by Travel + Leisure . No other travel company has simultaneously received the same honors by both publications. For additional information, contact Viking at 1-800-2-VIKING (1-800-284-5464) or visit www.viking.com . For Viking’s award-winning enrichment channel, visit www.viking.tv . Contact

Email: [email protected]

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WEATHER ALERT

2 river flood warnings in effect for Brantley and Columbia Counties

Ledecky says faith in olympic anti-doping system at 'all-time low' after chinese swimming case.

Associated Press

NEW YORK – Olympic champion Katie Ledecky says faith in the anti-doping system is at an “all-time low” in the wake of the way global regulators handled a case involving Chinese swimmers.

The seven-time Olympic gold medalist is looking to add to her haul this summer in Paris. In an interview with “CBS News Sunday Morning” that will air Sunday, Ledecky expressed concern that she and many others won't be competing on a level playing field at what could be her fourth Olympics in France.

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“It’s hard going into Paris knowing that we’re going to be racing some of these athletes,” said Ledecky, who will be at U.S. Olympic trials starting June 15. “And I think our faith in some of the systems is at an all-time low.”

Among Ledecky's medals in Tokyo three years ago was a silver from the 4x200-meter freestyle relay that China won. Last month, the New York Times and German broadcaster ARD reported that 23 Chinese swimmers tested positive for a performance-enhancing drug in the months leading up to those Olympics, where some of the Chinese swimmers who tested positive were allowed to compete.

Chinese authorities did not penalize the athletes after determining the drug had entered the swimmers’ systems through contamination. The World Anti-Doping Agency accepted that explanation , saying in part that it had very little chance of winning an appeal had it opened a case.

Ledecky, whose six individual Olympic golds is a women's record, said “it doesn’t seem like everything was followed to a ‘T'" regarding the handling of the case.

“I'd like to see some accountability here,” she said. “I’d like to see some answers as to why this happened the way it did. And I’d really like to see that steps are taken for the future so that we can regain some confidence in the global system.”

WADA hired a Swiss lawyer to conduct a review of the way the case was handled, but critics have said the probe is too narrow and not truly independent. Ledecky added to a chorus of athletes who would like to see more transparency about the case that figures to cast a shadow over swimming in Paris.

“I think the whole case has to be reexamined independently and thoroughly," she said, "and all the information needs to be out there.”

AP Summer Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/2024-paris-olympic-games

Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.

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THE 5 BEST Dzerzhinsky Points of Interest & Landmarks

Points of interest & landmarks in dzerzhinsky.

• Monuments & Statues
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• 5.0 of 5 bubbles
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• Things to do ranked using Tripadvisor data including reviews, ratings, photos, and popularity.

1. Temple of the Beheading of St. John the Baptist of Ugresh Monastery of St. Nicholas

2. Chapel of Phenomena Image of St. Nicholas in Nikolo-Ugreshskiy Monastery

3. Temple of the Mother of God of All Who Sorrow Ugresh Nicholas Monastery

4. Chapel of the Passion of Nikolo-Ugreshskiy Monastery

5. temple of holy spirit.

6. Temple of Makariy Nevskiy

7. Chapel of Our Lady of the Perishing

Watch CBS News

Disaster on Chinese river as cruise ship flips over

Updated on: June 2, 2015 / 6:57 AM EDT / CBS/AP

BEIJING -- Rescuers pulled out survivors after hearing cries for help Tuesday from inside a capsized cruise ship on China's Yangtze River after it went down overnight in a storm with 458 people aboard, most of them elderly, state broadcaster CCTV said.

At least 22 people survived, seven of whom managed to swim ashore on their own. Six people were confirmed dead after the accident, which occurred late Monday during a cruise from Nanjing to the southwestern city of Chongqing, the broadcaster said.

Search teams heard people calling out from within the partially submerged ship when they climbed aboard the upside-down hull, CCTV reported, more than 12 hours after the ship went down in Hubei Province at about 9:38 p.m. Monday during windy weather.

The overturned ship drifted almost two miles downstream before coming to rest close to the river shore, where choppy waters were hindering the rescue.

Footage from the broadcaster showed rescuers in orange life vests climbing on the upside-down hull, with one of them lying down tapping a hammer and listening for a response, then gesturing downward.

The Reuters news agency reported rescuers appeared to be cutting their way through the ship's upturned hull to reach those feared trapped inside.

The fact that the capsized ship drifted downstream was a good sign for rescuers because it meant there was enough air inside to give it buoyancy, and could mean there are enough air pockets for survivors to breathe, said Chi-Mo Park, a professor of naval architecture and ocean engineering at South Korea's Ulsan University.

"It all depends how much space there is inside the vessel," Park said.

The official Xinhua News Agency quoted the captain and chief engineer, who were both rescued, as saying the ship sank quickly after being caught in a cyclone. The Communist Party-run People's Daily said the ship sank within two minutes. CCTV said the two men were in police custody.

Both the captain and chief engineer were in police custody following the disaster.

CCTV said the four-level ship had been carrying 406 Chinese passengers, five travel agency employees and 47 crew members. The broadcaster said most of the passengers were 50 to 80 years of age.

Relatives of passengers gathered in Shanghai at a travel agency that had booked many of the trips, and they later headed to a government office to try to get more information about the accident.

Huang Yan, 49, an accountant in Shanghai, wept as she told a reporter she believes her husband, 49, and his father, who is in his 70s, were aboard the boat. But she said she couldn't be sure because she hadn't seen an official passenger list yet.

"Why did the captain leave the ship while the passengers were still missing?" Yan shouted. "We want the government to release the name list to see who was on the boat."

The ship sank in the Damazhou waterway section, where the river is about 50 feet deep. The Yangtze is the world's third-longest river and sometimes floods during the summer monsoon season.

Several rescue ships were searching the waters, and divers had been deployed. The broadcaster said rescue personnel were trying to determine whether they could right the sunken ship.

The channel said seven of the survivors swam to shore and alerted authorities to the sinking.

More than 50 boats and 3,000 people were involved in search efforts.

The Eastern Star measured 251 feet long and 36 feet wide and was capable of carrying a maximum of 534 people, CCTV reported. It is owned by the Chongqing Eastern Shipping Corp., which focuses on tourism routes in the popular Three Gorges river canyon region. The company could not be reached for comment.

CCTV reported that 6 inches of rain had fallen in the region over the past 24 hours. Local media reported winds reached 80 mph during the accident.

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang is reported to be traveling to the accident site. Xinhua reported that President Xi Jinping had ordered a work team of the State Council, the country's Cabinet, to rush to the site to guide the rescue work.

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