Bulgarian Border Police Evacuate 186 After Viking Ullur Grounds
Viking chartered the French-flagged Vivaldi to receive passengers, but it could not come alongside, so travelers were moved by small boat in life jackets.
Bulgaria’s Border Police evacuated 186 passengers from Viking Ullur after the Viking river cruise ship grounded on the Danube early July 28 near Vidin, Bulgaria. The Swiss-flagged vessel, a 2019 Neptun Werft-built Viking Longship designed for 190 passengers, was carrying 52 crew on a Drobeta-Turnu Severin, Romania, to Vidin sailing.
Authorities cited extreme low water and nighttime navigation conditions, but said the ship had left the navigable channel before grounding about 15 miles above Vidin. River flow in the area had fallen to about 1,650 cubic meters per second from a normal 4,700, though authorities said Viking Ullur was operating within draft restrictions.
Passengers transferred after failed refloating attempts
Viking Ullur departed Drobeta-Turnu Severin at about 9:15 p.m. and grounded at approximately 2:20 a.m. as it sailed downriver. Local vessels attempted to pull the 443-foot ship free, and the Lower Danube River Administration sent the technical vessel Concordia to take depth measurements around the grounding site.
Viking chartered the French-flagged river ship Vivaldi to receive passengers. The Vivaldi could not come alongside Viking Ullur. Border Police images showed passengers wearing life jackets being moved by small boat to the second cruise ship.
Bulgaria’s state news agency BTA said passengers had run out of food and water after Viking Ullur was unable to reach Vidin, where it had been scheduled to replenish supplies. A passenger later said the group faced a five-hour bus transfer to Bucharest, with arrival expected at about 2 a.m. local time.
Authorities said Viking Ullur was not in immediate danger and, because it was outside the fairway, was not blocking other river traffic. The crew could remain aboard while refloating options are assessed.
Low-water disruption spreads across the Danube
The grounding occurred as the Danube’s low-water conditions were disrupting river cruise and cargo operations across several countries. European Union Copernicus Sentinel-2 imagery showed a rapid drop in parts of the river in Hungary during July, including newly exposed sediment bars along bends of the river.
The Danube is navigable for about 2,415 kilometers between Kelheim, Germany, and Sulina on the Black Sea. In the section near the grounding, authorities were also managing a cargo vessel stranded on a sandbar near Calafat, Romania.
Hungary’s national water authority measured the Danube at 23 centimeters in Budapest on Wednesday morning, below the previous all-time low of 33 centimeters set in 2018. Serbia and Croatia also reported record-low river levels, while cargo vessels in parts of the river have been forced to reduce loads because of draft limits.
“River cruise vessels are currently still able to enter Hungary, but several ships are stranded or waiting in ports because of the low water levels,” Laszlo Somodi, chief executive officer of Hungarian operator MAHART-PassNave, told Reuters. Somodi said international river cruises carry about 600,000 passengers through Hungary each year, while MAHART-PassNave bookings were down 18 percent so far in July.
Cruise lines adjust itineraries, docking and ship positions
River cruise brands operating on the Danube and Rhine have been changing embarkation points, rerouting sailings and substituting coach transfers where ships cannot dock as planned. Uniworld’s S.S. Emilie, sailing on the Danube earlier in July, was unable to continue beyond Vilshofen, Germany. Passengers missed Deggendorf, Regensburg and Nuremberg, and Uniworld added Linz and used bus tours for some excursions.
Viking has told affected guests and travel advisors that low water on sections of the Danube and Rhine may require itinerary changes. The company’s standard low-water contingency includes positioning sister ships in opposite directions on the same itinerary so guests can transfer with their luggage to a comparable vessel on the far side of an affected stretch.
Avalon Waterways canceled a small number of upcoming Danube and Rhine departures, while Riviera Travel said it was using different excursions and destinations rather than canceling sailings. Brands including TravelMarvel have also shifted embarkation arrangements where docking in major river cities has become impractical.
Regional forecasts called for the Danube to ebb further in the following days, with no significant rain expected and temperatures projected to exceed 38 degrees Celsius across parts of the region.
