Evacuation of passengers from ice-trapped ship in Antarctica likely Jan 3...

SYDNEY, January 02, /ITAR-TASS/. Evacuation of passengers from the Russian research ship MV Akademik Shokalsky, which is trapped in thick ice off some 100 km off Antarctica’s Adelie Land, will most probably be done January 3, not January 2, the ship’s captain Igor Kiselyov told Itar-Tass.

The Akademik Shokalsky has 74 people aboard - a 22-strong Russian crew and 52 passengers, some of them researchers from the Australian Antarctic Expedition and others being accompanying travelers.

Icebound Ship Still Awaits Rescue. -2 video

Passengers on board a Russian research ship are still anxiously awaiting rescue, nearly a week after being trapped in Antarctic ice.

The Chinese icebreaker Snow Bird sent to rescue the vessel came within 11 kilometers of the stranded Russian ship on Saturday, but had to stop when thick ice blocked its progress.

Rescue now depends on an Australian icebreaker that should arrive at the site later Sunday.

If the Australian vessel fails to break through the 3-meter-thick ice, a helicopter on the Chinese ship could be used to evacuate the passengers on the trapped vessel.