Eleven French tourists and four crew members were rescued by helicopter Monday night after their ship ran aground on the Norwegian archipelago of Svalbard in the Arctic, local authorities said Tuesday. There were no injuries in the incident, the governor's office said in a statement.

For reasons still undetermined, the tourist ship MS Isbjørn 2 ran aground Monday evening in a bay of the Isfjord fjord on this territory twice the size of Belgium, a thousand from the North Pole.

An investigation to determine the causes of the accident

Its 15 occupants were rescued by helicopter and transported to Longyearbyen, the capital of the archipelago also known as Spitsbergen. MS Isbjørn 2 was towed by another ship to be brought back to Longyearbyen.

"None of the people on board were physically injured," authorities said. An investigation has been launched to determine the causes of the accident. According to the authorities, no significant oil leaks have been detected in this fragile ecosystem where 65% of the areas are protected.

Tourism is, along with scientific research, one of the pillars of Svalbard's economy, having taken over from coal mining, long the main activity. Before Covid, up to 140,000 people visited the archipelago each year, where fewer than 3,000 people live.

  • Miscellaneous facts
  • Arctic
  • Shipwreck
  • Accident