Costa Deliziosa departed from Malé on Wednesday evening, March 4th, after embarking 28 Italian nationals who had been unable to leave the country following disruptions to regional air travel.
Information shared onboard indicated that the ship accepted the passengers after a request was received from the Italian Consulate in Malé. According to the vessel’s master, Severino Palomba, the individuals had been stranded when scheduled commercial flights were unable to operate due to the prevailing conditions affecting aviation in the region. The captain confirmed that arrangements had been made to accommodate the travellers and allow them to depart the Maldives by sea.
The vessel sailed from Malé at approximately 06:00 p.m. local time, with the additional passengers joining the ongoing voyage.
With regular air transport unavailable, the stranded Italians were provided with passage onboard the cruise ship to enable their departure from the archipelago. Passengers already aboard described the decision as a humanitarian measure carried out in coordination with Italian diplomatic authorities.
Operated by Costa Cruises, Costa Deliziosa is currently sailing a segment of a global itinerary that includes ports across the Indian Ocean and southern Africa. Following its departure from the Maldives, the vessel is scheduled to continue toward several regional ports before reaching Cape Town on March 18th.
For more Costa Deliziosa incidents and accidents, see the ship's CruiseMinus page.