A man is feared to have gone overboard from Ambassador’s Ambition solar eclipse cruise.
A large sea search and rescue operation is underway in Scotland after a man was discovered missing from the vessel.
The Ambition cruise, with around 1,000 people on board, was on its way from Lerwick, Shetland, to Dundee when the alarm was raised.
The captain and crew were alerted that one passenger was ‘not where they were expected to be,’ Ambassador said.
Passengers were briefly held on board the cruise ship while the Coastguard and police patrols were sent out to sea.
Ambassador said on social media: ‘We can confirm that the Captain of Ambition reported a missing person incident earlier this morning.
‘The ship, which is now berthed in Dundee, was on passage from Lerwick to Dundee when the alarm was raised after it was found that a guest was not where they were expected to be. Guests on board have been kept informed of developments by the Captain and a thorough ship-wide search was carried out on arrival in Dundee. Having initially been asked to remain on board while the search was carried out, guests have now been cleared to disembark.
‘Ambassador follows stringent search and rescue protocols in line with international maritime safety standards. We continue to work in close collaboration with the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC), the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, HM Coastguard and Police Scotland as the investigation continues.
‘Ambassador remains committed to the safety and wellbeing of all our guests and crew. As a result of this development, today’s turnaround operation in Dundee was slightly delayed. However, guests due to travel on board Ambition should make their way to the port as per their embarkation schedule.
‘We are unable to provide further details at this time due to this incident forming part of an ongoing police investigation.’
The incident was reported to the Coastguard at about 8.35am, when the vessel was around 36 nautical miles east of Arbroath on the Scottish coast, Metro understands.
Metro has contacted Police Scotland for a comment.
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