Aqua
Last October, we took a five day cruise on the Amazon from Iquitos, Peru. It was a fascinating trip. Iquitos is 2,000 nautical miles up the Amazon and yet is a deep water port with a controlling draft of around 20 feet. With a population approaching a half million, it is also the largest city in the world which is not accessible by road or rail. A small eco-tourist excursion cruise industry has developed in and around Iquitos. While the cruises are wonderful, they are not wholly without risk. The last few months have particularly difficult.
Explosion on the Aqua
Last Saturday, there was an explosion on the Aqua while the vessel was refueling in Iquitos on the Itaya River. The explosion caused the vessel to capsize and partially sink. Seven crew members were killed and 13 were injured. Eight of those injured suffered third-degree burns. No passengers were aboard the ship when she exploded. The Aqua, built in 2007, was 130 feet long and carried 24 passengers and a crew of 17. She was operated by Aqua Expeditions.
Bandits Attack Delfin Cruise’s Amazon Discovery
Two days before the explosion on the Aqua, a gang of bandits boarded the Amazon Discovery off the village of Wasi, roughly two hours from Iquitos, and robbed passengers and crew of a reported $20,000. At less than a year old, the Amazon Discovery is one of the newer cruise ships operating in region. The ship is 169′ long and can accommodate 44 guests with a crew of 29. There are reports that the ship’s captain was pistol whipped by the bandits, but has recovered. No other members of the crew or passengers were harmed.
The last reported attacks on river cruises operating on the Peruvian Amazon were in 2009, when armed bandits boarded the Aqua, the vessel which exploded last week, in two attacks over a roughly two week period. That gang was reported to have been pursued and captured by authorities.
Fire on La Estrella Amazonica
Last April, two American tourists, Larry and Christy Hammer, 74 and 72, died in a fire in their stateroom on the La Estrella Amazonica. The 139-foot boat is operated by International Expeditions has a capacity of 31 passengers according to the company website.
sad all this.
There is one main road, but can’t tell the condition from the map.
Carr. Iquitos-Nauta or LO-103,it bypasses part of the river.
There is one road between Nauta and Iquitos but it begins and ends in each city. There is no road or rail line into either place.
Sad to hear about problems of the small cruise industry in Iquitos. Actually, Iquitos is like Manaus, two cities that used the extensive waterways of the Amazon River and tributaries as a mode of transportation. You are right there is only one paved road to Nauta but that is it.
The German movie from 1982 “Fizcarraldo” depicts the harshness of hauling a boat over a mountain. Even Mick Jagger quit…… This is the trailer. Rick, very different than your cruise on the MV La Amatista…. This is the Story. One of the big problems in building roads in the Amazon Basin is that rivers often change course.
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“Fitzcarraldo” is an amazing movie and worth seeing. The history behind it was seriously amped up by Herzog, however. No doubt, the embellishments made for a better movie.
The real “Fitzcarraldo” was named Carlos Fitzcarrald, not Brian Sweeney Fitzgerald, as in the movie. Fitzcarrald did move a ship up a mountain but instead of 300 tons, it was reported to be 30 tons. Likewise, it had been taken apart and was moved in pieces and reassembled rather than as an intact vessel. Fitzcarrald died at the age of 35 when the ship he had had carried up the mountain sank in an accident.
Thanks Rick. It’s good to hear that you don’t leave no stone unturned.