VIDEO: Catamaran sinks off Croatian island, passengers evacuated

Princ Zadra ran aground on the Bračići rocks (Photo: Ministry of the Sea, Transport, and Infrastructure)

The catamaran that struck rocks next to the Croatian island of Premuda, has now sunk beneath the sea.

Croatia’s Ministry of the Sea, Transport, and Infrastructure was notified by the National Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC Rijeka) of the maritime accident involving a passenger catamaran.

The vessel, the Princ Zadra, ran aground on the Bračići rocks near the port of Premuda last night at approximately 6:20 p.m.

At the time of the grounding, there were around 70 passengers on board the catamaran.

MRCC Rijeka ordered the Jadrolinija passenger ship Vladimir Nazor to alter its route and assist with the evacuation of passengers from the catamaran.

All passengers were safely disembarked on the island of Silba, where they underwent medical examinations, the Ministry of the Sea, Transport, and Infrastructure confirmed.

(Photo: Ministry of the Sea, Transport, and Infrastructure)

This afternoon, shortly after 3 p.m., strong winds caused the catamaran to slide off the rocks where it had run aground and sink into the sea.

Just ten minutes after reports surfaced that the Princ Zadra was sinking near the rocks it struck, the catamaran sank and disappeared beneath the sea’s surface.

The depth at the site of the sinking is approximately 50 metres.

Officers from the Zadar Port Authority are conducting a preliminary investigation into the causes of the accident at the site of the grounding.

The Princ Zadra had been in service since 2003, transporting residents of the islands of Silba, Olib, and Premuda. The catamaran was 34 metres long and 9.5 metres wide, with a capacity of up to 300 passengers.