Ferry with hundreds of passengers onboard runs aground

Finnish authorities said there are “no lives in immediate danger” and the vessel is not leaking.

The Finnish coast guard said the Viking Line ferry that runs between the Finnish port city of Turku and Swedish capital Stockholm hit ground just off the port of Mariehamn, the capital of the Aland Islands.

The coast guard tweeted a photo showing the Viking Grace stuck just off shore.

“Viking Grace has run aground in front of Mariehamn. Firmly grounded, no leaks….The first rescue units are on site,” the tweet said.

The vessel was en route from Stockholm to Turku with a scheduled stop at Mariehamn.

Strong storm winds prevailed in the area at the time.

Ferry operator Viking Line confirmed the incident and said it is investigating.

Coast guard officials told Finnish media that the Viking Grace, a large vessel capable of carrying up to 2,800 passengers, was near the shore when for some reason it seemed to have floated towards land.

In September, Viking Line’s Amorella passenger ferry also ran aground in the Aland Islands, an autonomous Finnish territory that consists of thousands of named and unnamed islands.

Its shallow waters and narrow passages are particularly tricky to navigate for large ships.

No-one was injured in the September incident.