The Norwegian cruise ship Fram with 318 passengers on board drifted into an iceberg in Antarctica overnight Saturday but there were no injuries and passengers were reported to be calm, according to dpa. The accident was caused by engine failure, according to the Norwegian Coastal Voyage Group, Hurtigruten, in Narvik. The crew were able to get the engine started again outside Browns Bluff, the company said. The reports said that the ship had not hit the iceberg "particularly hard," and had only sustained superficial damage to the vessel. "It was just after finishing a planned landing at Browns Bluff that the incident happened at 0930 local time," according to the company statement. Safety procedures where started and all passengers where assembled, the statement said. It was then decided to go to the Chilean airbase Frei at King George's Island where investigations of the damage and the reason for the engine trouble would be discussed, the company said. After this it would be decided whether to go directly to Ushuaia or continue the cruise with planned arrival in Ushuaia January 2. The MS Fram is the latest addition to the Norwegian Coastal Voyage Group's fleet and is specially adapted for Polar cruises.
