"It is dangerous to encounter engine problems in these waters, which hide numerous reefs," Franck said."I started to pray."The boat is stable.The area where the ship is stranded, known as Hustadvika, is notoriously difficult to navigate. Therefore we would prefer to have the passengers on land rather than on board the ship.Rescuers were working into the night on Saturday to airlift 1,300 passengers and crew off a cruise ship after it got into difficulty. It has dropped anchor and one of its engines is working," said a rescue centre spokesman, Borghild Eldoen.2 miles) off More og Romsdal, prompting the captain to send out a distress call.

The centre said eight people had suffered minor injuries."We were sitting down for breakfast when things started to shake.Pictures broadcast in media reports showed passengers on board as the boat rocked up and down.In their time, the Vikings hesitated to venture into the Hustadvika, preferring instead to transport their boats by land from one fjord to another. The winds were like a tornado," she added."The operation is going on all night long."The Viking Sky sent out a distress signal due to "engine problems in bad weather", southern Norways rescue centre said earlier on Twitter.Another vessel had been despatched to try to tow the Viking Sky into port, potentially removing the need for the airlift.The ship was travelling south en route from Tromso to Stavanger when it got into trouble in an area that has claimed many ships... Helicopters fly over the cruise ship Viking Sky after it sent out a Mayday signal because of engine failure in windy conditions..The Viking Sky lost power and started drifting mid-afternoon two kilometres (1.Tor Andre Franck, the head of the police operations, said: "The boat only has one working engine and the winds are rather strong.

The crew managed to restart one of the engines and drop anchor but authorities decided it was too risky for passengers to remain on board. I prayed for the safety of everyone on board," she told the NRK television channel."Hustadvika is one of the most notorious maritime areas that we have," Odd Roar Lange, a journalist specialising in tourism, told NRK.By 9:00 pm (2000 GMT) 136 people had been evacuated, with each helicopter able to take 15-20 people per airlift.Operated by the Norwegian firm Viking Ocean Cruisers, the Viking Sky is a modern cruise ship launched in 2017 with a capacity of 930 passengers plus crew. The people are safe on board," said Per Fjeld, a rescue centre official. It was just chaos," said another passenger, American John Curry, as quoted in Norwegian by media.Five helicopters were scrambled along with coastguard and other rescue vessels.The shallow, ten nautical mile section of coastline is known for its many small islands and reefs..

In addition to US and British nationals, there were also passengers from 14 other countries on board, Fjeld said. (Photo:AP) fixing anchors Oslo: Rescuers were working into the night on Saturday to airlift 1,300 passengers and crew off a cruise ship after it got into difficulty in rough seas off the Norwegian coast."I have never seen anything so frightening," said one of the passengers who was rescued, Janet Jacob.A reception centre has been set up in a gym on shore to accommodate the evacuees, many of whom are from the US and Britain."The helicopter trip was terrifying."For the moment everything appears to be going well," added another spokesman, Einar Knutsen