A lifeboat from a British-operated cruise ship fell upside down the sea at port in Spain's Canary Islands during a safety drill, killing five crew members and injuring three others on Sunday, officials said. About 1400 passengers were on board, but none were involved in the accident. Thomson Cruises confirmed the accident involving the Thomson Majesty ship on the island of La Palma, saying "there have sadly been five crew fatalities and three crew injuries," as reported by the Associated Press. Investigators remain determined to find out how the life boat plummeted into the water.
At about 1205 GMT, or 7:05 a.m. EST), rescue personnel were called to the dockside after a regional government said, "a lifeboat with occupants had fallen overboard from a cruise ship docked at the pier of Santa Cruz port in La Palma." The ship had been due to sail Sunday afternoon to the Portuguese port of Funchal on the mid-Atlantic island of Madiera. There have also been reports that a small, white two-hulled lifeboat could be capsized beside the large ships. About 1400 passengers were aboard at the time of the Thomas Majesty Ship, but were not involved in the accident, authorities sad.
The Associated Press reports that three of the dead were Indonesian, one was Filipino and one from Ghana. All were men. The other injured were also men, two aged 30 and another, a Greek national. They were taken by ambulance to the general hospital of La Palma.
The local authorities of La Palma also canceled Carnival festivities were scheduled on the island for Sunday. They also did say the celebrations would go ahead instead on Monday.
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