One dead and four injured after giant wave hits Antarctic cruise ship

(CNN) — One person died and four others were injured when their cruise ship was hit by a “tide wave” during a storm earlier this week.

Passengers were aboard the Viking Polaris Antarctic cruise ship Tuesday night en route to Ushuaia, Argentina when the storm struck.

The storm caused a sea wave that smashed several glass panes on the cruise ship and landed on an American woman, who was killed.

Viking ships confirmed in a statement A release on Saturday said the ship was hit by a “tide wave,” a type of wave the US National Ocean Service describes as “twice the size of surrounding waves.”

“It is with great sadness that we can confirm that one guest has died following this incident,” Viking Cruises said.

Viking Cruises did not release the names or countries of the passengers.

However, Argentina’s state news agency Delum said the dead passenger was an American woman who “received blows from a glass surface that collapsed in the middle of the storm.”

“Four other passengers sustained life-threatening injuries during the incident and were treated by the ship’s doctor and medical staff,” Viking said.

The cruise line said it is canceling the next Viking Polaris voyage scheduled for December 5-17 and is investigating.

The ship arrived in Argentina on Wednesday and suffered “limited damage” during the incident, Viking Cruises said.

The US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) describes rogue waves as “highly unpredictable” and says they often come unexpectedly from directions other than prevailing winds and tides.