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Free at last, Ocean Explorer is refloated after Greenland grounding

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Ocean Explorer is underway following tts grounding in Northeast Greenland National Park
SunStone, the Miami-based owner of Ocean Explorer, confirmed its ship has been successfully assisted off its grounding by Tarajoq, a Greenland research vessel involved in several earlier attempts to refloat her.

Ocean Explorer, which ran aground Monday in the remote Northeast Greenland National Park, was awaiting the arrival of the Royal Danish Navy’s patrol ship Knud Rasmussen which was not due until late Friday local time.

No injuries, no pollution

‘There have not been any injuries to any person on board, no pollution of the environment and no breach of the hull,’ a SunStone statement said.

‘We would like to thank our charterer Aurora Expeditions, as well as all their passengers for an excellent cooperation in this unexpected and difficult circumstance.

‘The vessel and its passengers will now be positioned to a port where the vessel’s bottom damages can be assessed and the passengers will be taken to a port from which they can be flown back home.’

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Tarajoq to the rescue

Deepest gratitude

‘We would like to extend our deepest gratitude to the management and team of the Tarajoq vessel for assisting us during this challenging time and our team who have worked tirelessly to ensure the safety and comfort of our passengers,’ a statement from Aurora Expeditions said.