Tourist ship stuck on the Danube River due to low water level, evacuate over 180 passengers

According to Bulgaria's Interior Ministry, the ship “Vulture”, with the Swiss flag, was stuck about 2:20 a.m., about 25 km from the town of Vidin, northwest of the country.

There were 186 passengers and 52 crew members aboard. Authorities announced that the accident occurred at night, under limited visibility conditions and as a result of the extremely low water level on the Danube River.

For security reasons, the evacuation of passengers was carried out with the help of a floating border guard vehicle, while authorities hoped the operation would end before the fall of the night.

The ship carried out tourist voyages on the route between Budapest and Romania. All passengers were citizens of European countries. The floating vehicle was expected to stop at Vidin's port for fuel supply, while, according to authorities, it had also begun to face a lack of drinking water.

The company operating the ship “Vikinging Ullure” had rented another vessel to transport passengers, but he failed to get near the stranded ship.

Photographs published by Bulgarian police show passengers equipped with life jackets as they board the border guard vehicle with the help of rescue teams.

The drop in water levels on the Danube River comes at a time when Europe is facing successive heat waves this summer. The low water level on the river, which crosses ten European states, is significantly making navigation difficult.