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Doomed Ship Defies Antarctica Odds
By FEDERICO QUILODRAN, Associated Press Writer

PUNTA ARENAS, Chile - A rare calm in Antarctic seas and the swift response by a passing ship helped save all aboard a Canadian cruise liner that struck an iceberg in the night and sank, rescued passengers and experienced sailors said Saturday.



The MS Explorer, a Canadian-operated cruiser built in 1969 as a pioneer amongh rugged go-anywhere tourist ships that plied waters from the Amazon to the Arctic and Antarctic circles, struck ice Friday, took on water and dipped beneath the waves more than 15 hours later.

All 154 passengers and crew spent hours bobbing in life rafts on chilly seas before a Norwegian cruise ship plucked them up shivering but safe and took them to two military bases on King George Island for flights out.

A Chilean air force plane flew the first 77 survivors to the South American mainland Saturday from the island 660 miles south of here. The rest were to be flown out Sunday.



American Ely Chang of Urban, Calif. was among the first to get out of a Chilean Hercules C-130 in Punta Arenas, clutching his life jacket like a precious souvenir and reminder of anxious hours spent adrift.

"It was very cold but I'm so happy because we all survived this and everyone's all right. Now I'm going home," he said.



Dutch citizen Jan Henkel said he decided to propose to his girlfriend Mette Larsen after they survived the ordeal.

"There were some very frightening moments but the crew was very professional and the captain very good and had everything under control," said Henkel.

Others in Antarctica counted the survivors lucky.

MORE ...

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071125/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/antarctica_ship_sinking
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