An Azamara Cruises vessel underway in the Aegean was involved in an accident that caused the death of a Greek man towing it.
The incident occurred late Friday at the island of Patmos as the 30,277-gt Azamara Journey (built 2000) was about to leave port.
Greek coastguards declined to comment on the causes of the accident, saying the matter was under investigation.
A local diver speaking on Greek state television said that the Azamara Journey was probably still connected to the 50-gt Pothitos III (built 2002), sucking it to its own hull and ultimately causing it to sink.
“Something must have gone wrong in their communication,” diver Theologos Giannaros said.
According to rescuer Nikos Melianos, the tug boat had been on the port side of the cruise ship.
As rescuers rushed to the scene, the 26-year-old engineer of the Pothitos III was retrieved safe on a life raft.
The tug boat’s master, however, was trapped in his cabin and had to be recovered under water. A local hospital pronounced him death later.
He was a father to two children.
“It is a tragedy,” Patmos mayor Eleftherios Pentes told state television.
The Malta-flagged Azamara Journey was allowed to continue its itinerary while local coastguards investigate.
The ship belongs to Azamara Cruises, which used to be a brand of industry giant Royal Caribbean Group but was sold in 2021 to private equity firm Sycamore Partners.
The company owns another three small cruise ships.
