Greg Mortimer (ship)

Greg Mortimer is a cruise ship owned and operated by Aurora Expeditions. The ship was named in honour of the company's founder Greg Mortimer, in a combined naming and delivery ceremony at CMHI's Haimen base on 6 September 2019.

History
 Bahamas
Name: Greg Mortimer
Owner: SunStone Ships
Operator: Aurora Expeditions
Aurora Expeditions Logo
Builder: China Merchants Heavy Industry, Jiangsu. China
Laid down: 12 June 2018
Launched: 12 March 2019
Christened: 6 September 2019
Identification:
Status: In service
General characteristics
Type: Cruise ship
Tonnage: 7,892 GT
Length: 104.4 m (343 ft)
Beam: 18.4 m (60 ft)
Draft: 5.3 m (17 ft)
Decks: 8
Speed: 12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph)
Capacity: 126

Design and description

The ship is a 104 m (341 ft 2 in) expedition ship with a state of the art x-bow design which has a piercing effect on smaller waves, making for a smoother ride. It has 80 cabins.[1]

Construction and career

The ship was named after the Australian mountaineer, polar explorer and founder of Aurora Expeditions, Greg Mortimer.[2] Mortimer arguably became best known as one of the first two Australians (with Tim Macartney-Snape) to successfully climb Mount Everest, on 3 October 1984.[3]

Coronavirus pandemic
Main article: COVID-19 pandemic on cruise ships ยง Greg Mortimer

On 7 April 2020, the cruise ship, which holds up to 216 passengers,[4] became stranded in Uruguayan waters, asking for help after people exhibited symptoms such as fever, which prompted authorities to ban them from disembarking.[5] After the Uruguayan medical teams boarded the cruise ship to test passengers on 1 April, 81 people tested positive for COVID-19. Six people found seriously ill with coronavirus were evacuated and transferred to hospitals.[6]

A news report on 8 April stated that the ship had not yet received permission to dock, although Uruguayan authorities were arranging an evacuation flight to Australia and New Zealand. By that time 128 persons on the vessel had tested positive for COVID-19. Six had transferred to a hospital in Montevideo. Passengers from Europe and America who had positive tests would not be allowed to travel to their home countries until their subsequent tests indicated negative results.[7] On the night of 10 April some passengers were evacuated in order to fly to Australia.[8] On 18 April, a Filipino crewman died of the coronavirus.[9]

References
  1. "Greg Mortimer". polarroutes.co.uk. Retrieved 8 April 2020.
  2. "Greg Mortimer". Talking Heads with Peter Morrison. ABC. 5 October 2009. Archived from the original on 1 June 2011. Retrieved 8 April 2020.
  3. Hall, Lincoln & Weldon, Kevin (1985). White Limbo: The First Australian Climb of Mt Everest. Sydney, Australia.
  4. Compare: "Greg Mortimer Expedition Ship Features". Aurora Expeditions. 2020. Retrieved 12 April 2020. Accommodating an average of 126 passengers per voyage, the Greg Mortimer has redefined expedition cruising for the future.
  5. Blakkarly, Jarni (6 April 2020). "Greg Mortimer: 81 people test positive for COVID-19 on Australian cruise ship off Uruguay". SBS News. Retrieved 8 April 2020.
  6. Noyes, Jenny (6 April 2020). "More than 80 passengers on board Greg Mortimer cruise ship test positive for COVID-19". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 8 April 2020.
  7. Griffiths, James & Castillo, Jackie (8 April 2020). "Passengers to be evacuated from Antarctic cruise ship after almost 60% test positive for coronavirus". CNN. Retrieved 8 April 2020.
  8. "Uruguay Evacuates 112 Australians, New Zealanders From Ship". The New York Times. 10 April 2020.
  9. AKLANON SEAMAN, NAMATAY SA COVID-19 Radyo Todo 18 April 2020
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