(CNN) Rescuers are scrambling to rescue about 1,300 passengers and crew from a cruise ship off Norway that suffered an engine failure, emergency officials said Saturday.

The Viking Sky ship sent a distress signal Saturday due to "engine problems in bad weather," said Borghild Eldoen, a spokeswoman for the Joint Rescue Centre for Southern Norway.

The vessel is in rough seas in the Hustadvika area on the western coast of Norway and rescuers are facing waves of about 6-8 meters (roughly 19-26 feet) high, she said.

Helicopters airlifted passengers and crew members one by one Saturday and the process could continue overnight and through Sunday.

"We can't say how long it would take," Eldoen said.

Read More</s>(CNN) — Rescuers are scrambling to rescue about 1,300 passengers and crew from a cruise ship off Norway that suffered an engine failure, emergency officials said Saturday.

The Viking Sky ship sent a distress signal Saturday due to “engine problems in bad weather,” said Borghild Eldoen, a spokeswoman for the Joint Rescue Centre for Southern Norway.

The vessel is in rough seas in the Hustadvika area on the western coast of Norway and rescuers are facing waves of about 6-8 meters (roughly 19-26 feet) high, she said.

Helicopters airlifted passengers and crew members one by one Saturday and the process could continue overnight and through Sunday.

“We can’t say how long it would take,” Eldoen said.

Passenger Alexus Sheppard from northern California said she has been waiting almost six hours to be evacuated. Most people were fairly calm, she said, and they were being served food and water.

“It’s still rocking and rolling here,” Sheppard said.

As of Saturday night, about 115 passengers had been rescued and at least eight people had “minor injuries,” Eldoen said.

It’s unclear whether any passengers still on the ship have been hurt.

Because only one of the ship’s engines is running, rescuers are trying to get the rest of the engines “working again so the ship can go by its own machine to a safe harbor” to bring all the passengers to shore.

Rescuers are trying to ensure the ship remains secure and doesn’t drift, officials said.

Authorities initially sent five helicopters and a number of vessels to evacuate the passengers. They were forced to divert some resources when a nearby freight vessel lost engine power, putting that ship’s crew in danger, rescue center officials said.

The evacuation of the cruise ship was delayed, officials said, and those still on board were considered safe.

The Viking Sky ship, owned by Viking Ocean Cruises, was built in 2017 and can hold 930 guests, according to the company’s website.

The vessel was on its way to Stavanger from Tromso, according to the website Marine Traffic.</s>HELSINKI -- Police say a cruise ship with engine problems has sent a mayday call off Norway's western coast and is making plans to evacuate its 1,300 passengers and crew.

Norwegian newspaper VG said the Viking Sky cruise ship ran into propulsion problems as strong winds and heavy seas hit Norway's coastal regions Saturday.

Police in the western county of Moere og Romsdal said Saturday the ship has managed to moor in Hustadsvika Bay, between the western Norwegian cities of Alesund and Trondheim.

Rescue teams with helicopters and boats have been sent to help and evacuate the vessel, a process expected to take several hours.

The Viking Sky was delivered in 2017 to operator Viking Ocean Cruises.</s>Rescue teams with helicopters and boats were sent to evacuate the cruise ship under extremely difficult circumstances

The cruise ship Viking Sky after it sent out a Mayday signal because of engine failure in windy conditions off the west coast of Norway, Saturday March 23, 2019. The Viking Sky is forced to evacuate its 1,300 passengers. (Odd Roar Lange / NTB scanpix via AP)

A cruise ship with engine problems sent a mayday call off Norway’s western coast on Saturday as it desperately tried to avoid being grounded on the rocky coast. Rescue workers then launched a high-risk evacuation of the ship’s 1,300 passengers and crew, winching them one-by-one up to helicopters as heaving waves tossed the ship from side to side.

The Norwegian newspaper VG said the Viking Sky cruise ship ran into propulsion problems as bad weather hit Norway’s coastal regions on Saturday and it started drifting toward land. Police in the western county of Moere og Romsdal said the crew, fearing the ship would run aground, managed to anchor in Hustadsvika Bay, between the western Norwegian cities of Alesund and Trondheim, so the evacuations could take place.

Rescue teams with helicopters and boats were sent to evacuate the cruise ship under extremely difficult circumstances. Norwegian media reported gusts up to 38 knots and waves over 26 feet. The area is known for its rough, frigid waters.

Norwegian public broadcaster NRK said the Viking Sky’s evacuation was a slow and dangerous process, as passengers needed to be hoisted from the cruise ship to the five available helicopters one by one. By 6 p.m., some 100 people had been rescued and were being taken to a nearby sports hall.

Later, reports emerged that a cargo ship with nine crew members was in trouble nearby, and the local Norwegian rescue service diverted two of the helicopters to that rescue.

Authorities told NRK that a strong storm with high waves was preventing rescue workers from using life boats or other vessels in taking passengers ashore.

“It’s a demanding exercise, because they (passengers) have to hang in the air under a helicopter and there’s a very, very strong wind,” witness Odd Roar Lange told NRK at the site.

Video and photos from people on the ship showed it heaving, with chairs and other furniture dangerously rolling from side to side. Passengers were suited up in orange life vests but the waves broke some windows and water flowed over the feet of some passengers.

According to the cruisemapper.com website, the Viking Sky was on a 12-day trip that began March 14 in the western Norwegian city of Bergen.

The ship was visiting the Norwegian towns and cities of Narvik, Alta, Tromso, Bodo and Stavanger before its scheduled arrival Tuesday in the British port of Tilbury on the River Thames.

The Viking Sky, a vessel with gross tonnage of 47,800, was delivered in 2017 to operator Viking Ocean Cruises.

Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.</s>About 1,300 passengers and crew members are being evacuated Saturday from a cruise ship off Norway, Norwegian emergency services said.

The Viking Sky cruise ship sent a distress signal due to “engine problems in bad weather,” Borghild Eldoen, a spokeswoman for the Joint Rescue Centre for Southern Norway, told CNN.

About 115 people had been airlifted Saturday and rescue operations will continue through the night and Sunday, Eldoen said.

Eight people were brought ashore with “minor injuries,” she said.

It’s unclear whether any passengers still on the ship have been hurt.

The ship, in rough seas in the Hustadvika area on the western coast of Norway, is working to get more than one engine running, the rescue center said on Twitter.

Rescuers are trying to ensure the ship remains secure and doesn’t drift as they attempt to get the engines “working again so the ship can go by its own machine to a safe harbor.”

The ship is currently secured with one anchor.

As five helicopters and a number of vessels attempted to evacuate the passengers, a nearby freight vessel lost engine power forcing authorities to divert some resources to help that ship’s crew, rescue center officials said.

The evacuation of the cruise ship would be delayed, officials said, and those still on board are considered safe.

The Viking Sky ship, owned by Viking Ocean Cruises, was built in 2017 and can hold 930 guests, according to the company’s website.

The vessel was on its way to Stavanger from Tromso, according to the website Marine Traffic.</s>Viking Sky cruise ship reaches port in Norway after harrowing helicopter airlifts rescued half its passengers

STAVANGER, Norway (AP) — Viking Sky cruise ship reaches port in Norway after harrowing helicopter airlifts rescued half its passengers.</s>Oslo: Rescue helicopters were evacuating people from a cruise ship which suffered engine failure on Saturday in windy conditions off the west coast of Norway, police and rescue workers said.

The maritime rescue service said the Viking Sky, with about 1,300 passengers and crew on board, had sent out a mayday signal as it had been drifting towards land.

The maritime rescue service said the Viking Sky, with about 1,300 passengers and crew on board, had sent out a mayday signal as it had been drifting towards land.

But the crew were later able to restart one engine and the ship was at anchor about 2km from land.

Passengers were hoisted one by one from the deck of the vessel and airlifted to a village just north of the town of Molde on Norway's west coast. About 100 people had been evacuated by 1530 GMT, police said.

"If we need to evacuate everyone, it will take a long time," rescue service spokesman Einar Knudsen told Reuters.

The stretch of water known as Hustadvika is known for its fierce weather and shallow waters dotted with reefs. The Norwegian government is evaluating whether to build a giant ocean tunnel through a nearby mountain to improve safety.

The Viking Sky, built in 2017, belongs to Viking Ocean Cruises, part of the Viking Cruises group founded by Norwegian billionaire Torstein Hagen. According to the company's website, its passenger capacity is 930.

Several vessels and four helicopters took part in the rescue and facilities to receive passengers have been set up on land, the rescue service said.

All search and rescue teams in the region are mobilising, including 60 volunteers from the Norwegian Red Cross, a spokesman said.</s>More passengers lifted off Norway cruise ship before towing

STAVANGER, Norway (AP) — Rescue workers are evacuating more passengers from a cruise ship that had engine problems in bad weather off Norway's western coast while authorities prepare to tow the vessel to a nearby port.

Norway's Joint Rescue Center said 379 of the 1,373 passengers and crew members on the Viking Sky had been taken off the ship one-by-one and airlifted to shore as of Sunday morning.

The rescue center says three of the ship's four engines are working now and will help power the boat while it's towed to Molde. The helicopter evacuations will continue in the meantime.

The Viking Sky ran into trouble Saturday afternoon in an unpredictable area of the Norwegian coast known for rough, frigid waters. Police said the crew, fearing the ship would run aground, managed to anchor in Hustadvika Bay so the evacuations could take place.</s>HELSINKI — Rescue workers off Norway’s western coast rushed to evacuate 1,300 passengers and crew from a disabled cruise ship by helicopter on Saturday, winching them one-by-one to safety as heaving waves tossed the ship from side to side and high winds battered the operation.

The Viking Sky issued a mayday call as bad weather hit and engine problems caused it to start drifting toward the rocky shore, the Norwegian newspaper VG reported. Police in the western county of Moere og Romsdal said the crew, fearing the ship would run aground, managed to anchor in Hustadvika Bay, between the Norwegian cities of Alesund and Trondheim, so the evacuations could take place.

Rescue teams with helicopters and boats were sent to evacuate the cruise ship under extremely difficult circumstances, including gusts up to 38 knots (43 mph) and waves over 8 meters (26 feet). The area is known for its rough, frigid waters.

The majority of the cruise ship passengers were reportedly British and American tourists. About 180 have been evacuated, according to rescue officials.

Video and photos from people on the ship showed it heaving, with chairs and other furniture dangerously rolling from side to side. Passengers were suited up in orange life vests but the waves broke some ship windows and cold water flowed over the feet of some passengers.

Norwegian public broadcaster NRK said the Viking Sky’s evacuation was a slow and dangerous process, as passengers needed to be hoisted one-by-one from the cruise ship to the five available helicopters.

“I was afraid. I’ve never experienced anything so scary,” Janet Jacob, among the first group of passengers evacuated to the nearby town of Molde, told NRK.

She said her helicopter ride to safety came amid strong winds “like a tornado,” prompting her to pray “for the safety of all aboard.”

American passenger John Curry told NRK that he was having lunch as the cruise ship started to shake.

“It was just chaos. The helicopter ride from the ship to shore I would rather not think about. It wasn’t nice,” Curry told the broadcaster.

NRK said one 90-year-old-man and his 70-year-old spouse on the ship were severely injured but did not say how that happened.

Later, reports emerged that a cargo ship with nine crew members was in trouble nearby, and the local Norwegian rescue service diverted two of the five helicopters working on the cruise ship to that rescue.

Authorities told NRK that a strong storm with high waves was preventing rescue workers from using life boats or tug boats to take passengers ashore.

“It’s a demanding exercise, because they (passengers) have to hang in the air under a helicopter and there’s a very, very strong wind,” witness Odd Roar Lange told NRK at the site.

Rescuers were prioritizing the nine crew members aboard the Hagland Captain cargo ship, said Per Fjeld of the Joint Rescue Center Southern Norway. He later said all nine crewmembers had been rescued.

Norwegian authorities said late Saturday that the evacuation of the Viking Sky would proceed all through the night into Sunday.

Officials said late Saturday night that three of the ship’s four engines had been restarted and it was moving southwest - but not toward shore.

The Viking Sky was on a 12-day trip that began March 14 in the western Norwegian city of Bergen, according to the cruisemapper.com website.

The ship was visiting the Norwegian towns and cities of Narvik, Alta, Tromso, Bodo and Stavanger before its scheduled arrival Tuesday in the British port of Tilbury on the River Thames.

The Viking Sky, a vessel with gross tonnage of 47,800, was delivered in 2017 to operator Viking Ocean Cruises.

Copyright 2019 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.</s>HELSINKI — The Latest on the Viking Sky cruise ship, which is having engine problems off the coast of Norway (all times local):

Norwegian officials say rescue workers have managed to evacuate about 100 people so far from a cruise ship that ran into engine problems in heavy winds and seas and sent a mayday call off Norway's western coast.

Authorities kicked off an evacuation on Saturday afternoon of the estimated 1,300 passengers and crew from the Viking Sky cruise ship. Rescue teams with helicopters and boats have been sent to help, and the evacuation process expected to take several hours.
Rescuers scramble to rescue about 1,300 passengers and crew from the cruise ship Viking Sky adrift off the coast of Norway.