Safety and medical issues cited following passenger death, mass injuries in loss of propulsion incident

New safety recommendations have been issued by the UK’s Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) following its investigation into a loss-of-propulsion incident on a 58,000-gt cruise ship in 2023 that resulted in a passenger’s death and injuries to 115 others.

Published in March 2026, the MAIB report outlines the circumstances of the incident on Spirit of Discovery, which occurred while the vessel was sailing across the Bay of Biscay in a violent storm on its return from a two-week itinerary to the Canary Islands.

On 4 November 2023, strong winds (up to Force 11) and rough seas (with significant wave heights of 8 to 11 m) caused the ship to pitch heavily and roll violently, leading to propeller over-speed and the automatic shutdown of its propulsion pods.

According to the agency, the propulsion control system automatically and unexpectedly parked both pods at 90° to the vessel’s heading during the incident. Over 18 hours in rough seas, the port and starboard pods intermittently oversped and shut down a further eight times.

Of the 115 passengers injured, eight were considered seriously injured and were taken directly to the hospital on arrival in port. One elderly passenger, who suffered a spinal injury when his armchair fell backwards, later died in hospital from his injuries.

A luxury brand, Saga Cruises caters to an over-50s demographic. During the voyage, the ship was carrying 943 passengers, with an average age of 79.

Investigators found that the decision to cross the bay was not effectively challenged by either the crew or operational teams ashore, despite warnings of heavy weather. They also concluded that the failure to implement the mass casualty incident plan left medical personnel “overstretched” and led to “suboptimal treatment” for the passenger who later died.

MAIB recommended that the UK’s Maritime and Coastguard Agency extend international carriage requirements to cover electronic inclinometers, and that the vessel’s classification societies improve the quality of instruction manuals. The ship was built to DNV class and later transferred to Lloyd’s Register.

Investigators also recommended that Siemens Energy, the vessel’s propulsion manufacturer, issue a customer advice note to owners of vessels fitted with similar pods.

Built by Meyer Werft shipyard in 2019, Spirit of Discovery was among the first large cruise ships to be equipped with Siemens SISHIP SiPODs.

MAIB is an independent investigative unit within the UK’s Department for Transport. It investigates marine accidents involving UK vessels operating worldwide and all vessels in UK territorial waters. The agency’s goal is not to apportion blame or liability, but to prevent similar accidents from recurring.

MAIB also recommended increasing the number of specially qualified medical personnel carried on passenger vessels and updating policies on securing vessel furniture in heavy weather.

While noting cruise shipping’s strong safety record, MAIB chief inspector of marine accidents Rob Loder said, “A complex sequence of events led to this accident.” He highlighted lessons on vessel safety, crew decision-making, and medical response. He added that he was “encouraged by the swift action taken by the vessel’s owner, manager and manufacturers”, but urged the cruise industry “to learn the lessons from this tragic accident.”

MAIB said the vessel’s owner, Saga Cruises, its manager V Ships Leisure, the medical services provider, propulsion manufacturer, and shipyard have all taken steps to address the safety issues identified in the investigation. The agency said these actions included “improved vessel itinerary and passage planning risk assessments, better tracking of technical issues, implementation of the mass casualty incident plan, enhanced specialist medical support, improved machinery failure checklists, and securing objects for heavy weather.”