MS Prinsendam

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Career
Name:	1988-1999: Royal Viking Sun 1999-2002: Seabourn Sun 2002-present: Prinsendam
Operator:	1988-1994: Royal Viking Line 1994-1998: Cunard Line 1998-2002: Seabourn Cruise Line 2002-present: Holland America Line
Port of Registry:	1988-1999: Nassau,  Bahamas 1999-2002: Oslo,  Norway 2002-present: Rotterdam,  Netherlands[1]
Builder:	Wärtsilä in Turku, Finland[1]
Launched:	March 17, 1988[1]
Acquired:	November 26, 1988[1]
In service:	1988-present
Nickname:	2002-present: The Elegant Explorer
Status:	in service
General characteristics (as built)
Class and type:	cruise ship
Tonnage:	37,848  gross register tons (GRT)
Length:	674.2 ft (205.5 m)
Beam:	91.8 ft (28.0 m)
Draught:	23.6 ft (7.2 m)
Decks:	9 passenger decks
Speed:	22 knots maximum, (service at 18.5 knots)
Capacity:	740 passengers
Crew:	460 crew
General characteristics (2002-present)
Capacity:	793 passengers
Crew:	443 crew

The MS Prinsendam (formerly Seabourn Sun and Royal Viking Sun) is a cruise ship for Holland America Line and is nicknamed the Elegant Explorer. She was launched in 1988 as the Royal Viking Sun for the Royal Viking Line, and was renamed "Seabourn Sun" when Seabourn Cruise Line acquired the ship in 1999. Shortly after, in 2002, Seabourn wished to concentrate on more intimate vessels.^[2] So, in 2002, they transferred the ship to Holland America Line, where it was renamed the Prinsendam.

Since the Prinsendam is smaller than most Holland America ships, she is able to stop in exotic ports of call. Annually, the ship completes Grand Voyages that usually last 30-70 days.

[edit] Rogue wave

In early March 2007, the Prinsendam was hit by an approximately 70-foot rogue wave while on the Antarctic segment of a cruise circumnavigating South America. She suffered minor damage, mainly broken glass and damaged furnishings. Upon her return to Fort Lauderdale, Florida, repairs were made to the vessel, delaying her departure on the next cruise by several hours.

Lido and Sports decks. The "astro turf" ground coverings have since been replaced with teak decks.

[edit] Earlier Prinsendam

There was also an earlier vessel named Prinsendam which was built at Shipyard de Merwede in the Netherlands in 1973. That ship was 427 feet long and typically carried about 350 passengers and 200 crew members. The liner was sailing through the Gulf of Alaska, approximately 120 miles south of Yakutat, Alaska, at midnight on October 4, 1980, when a fire broke out in the engine room. The vessel’s master declared the fire out of control one hour later and the Prinsendam sent a radio call requesting immediate assistance. The United States Coast Guard at Communications Station Kodiak, Alaska requested that the ms Prinsendam send out an SOS, but the captain declined. Chief Radio Officer Jack van der Zee sent one out anyways about a half hour later, which alerted nearby vessels.^[3]

As the ship's location was out of range of USCG Helicopters, USAF Air Rescue Service helicopters (which have a longer range and can be aerially refueled) airlifted medical officers and pararescue men to the ship and evacuated the injured from the fire prior to other ships reaching the scene to evacuate the passengers and crew.

United States Coast Guard and Canadian Coast Guard helicopters and the cutters Boutwell, Mellon, and Woodrush responded in concert with other vessels in the area. The passenger vessel later capsized and sank. The rescue is particularly important because of the distance traveled by the rescuers, the coordination of independent organizations, and the fact that all 520 passengers and crew were rescued without loss of life or serious injury.^[4]

[edit] References

[edit] External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

MS Prinsendam

• Official Prinsendam page on HollandAmerica.com
• Royal Viking Sun Video Clips