(Transcript from World News Australia Radio)
Fifty-two passengers have been rescued from a Russian research ship that has been stuck in ice in Antarctica since Christmas Eve.
A Chinese helicopter airlifted the passengers to the Australian icebreaker, the Aurora Australis, which is now heading back to its home port of Hobart.
As Peggy Giakoumelos reports, 22 crew members will remain with the Russian vessel.
(Click on audio tab above to listen to this item)
"We're the AAE (Australian Antarctic Expedition) who have travelled far, having fun doing science in Antarctica. Lots of snow and lots of ice, lots of penguins which are very, very nice. Really good food and company but a bloody great shame we are still stuck here. Ice thaw, cha, cha, cha. Ice thaw, cha, cha, cha."
Despite being stuck in sea ice in the Antarctic, tourists and scientists on the Russian ship, the Akademik Shokalskiy decided to bring in the new year in high spirits.
At that stage, the group did not know when they were going to be leaving the ship.
But the wait was finally over on January 2 when a Chinese helicopter airlifted the passengers to the Australian icebreaker, Aurora Australis.
Lisa Martin is a spokeswoman for the Australian Maritime Safety Authority.
"AMSA was advised that all 52 passengers had been safely rescued and were onboard the Aurora Australis. The Aurora Australis will now start heading towards open water. The Aurora Australis will then heard towards the Casey Base and complete a resupply before heading into Australia. The Aurora Australis is not expected to arrive in Australia until mid January."
The ship had been on an expedition to retrace an Antarctic expedition led by the Australian explorer, Douglas Mawson, in the early 1900s.
Expedition leader, Professor Chris Turney says morale remained high on the ship as passengers and crew continued their work as best they could and distracted themselves with yoga, photography and language classes.
Numerous passengers posted videoblogs, including Greens Senator Janet Rice.
Senator Rice said while she was keen to get home, the delay gave her a rare chance to do what she doesn't get to do very often - nothing.
"It really has been an amazing trip, a mixture of wilderness, science and fun and lots of time, in the last week of not having much to do. Which I found is a real luxury which is such a rarity in the rest of my life. And I know that once I am in the Senate after July it's going to be such a rare commodity that I am not going to have any opportunity to have any time off, so just enjoying time on the ship over the last wee and for the next two weeks as we make our way back to Australia is something that I really want to enjoy."
The Chinese exploration vessel Xue Long was first to respond to a distress call from the Akademik Shokalskiy but was unable to break through the sea ice and reach it, and then became stuck itself.
The Aurora Australis was next to try, but was forced to retreat in the face of 30 knot winds and snow showers 10 nautical miles from the Russian ship.
Authorities then decided to resort to using a helicopter on the Chinese ship to evacuation move the passengers to the Aurora Australis.
AMSA spokesman John Young says the process for such an international rescue operation is complex.
"The international arrangements that apply in these circumstances are laid down in the safety of life at sea and Maritime Search and Rescue Convention agreed by most countries. Because the incident was so remote from Australia, we were unable to use our own domestic aircraft and vessel to assist in this particular case, in incidents of this nature AMSA will issue a distress broadcast to shipping, and ships are obliged under the conventions to respond. In this case Aurora Australis and Xue Long both responded to the broadcast and were engaged in the operation under those arrangements."
As it helped with the evacuations from the Akademik Shokalskiy, the Chinese ship remained stuck in the sea ice.
AMSA says it will now try to free itself, and has not asked for any special assistance.
The crew still aboard the Akademik Shokalskiy will also attempt to free the ship without assistance when circumstances allow.
Share
