KYTHERA FERRY STRIKES REEF (25 July 2008)

The ANEN lines ferryboat “Myrtidiotissa” struck a reef just north of Kythera around midnight on Thursday, 24 July while on its way from Neapolis. The 297 passengers were shaken but unhurt, while the elderly ship suffered damage to at least three places on her hull. She will remain in Diakofti harbour pending a full survey; in the meantime, she is being replaced by “Express Pigassos” of Hellenic Seaways.

The Myrtidiotissa is one of the oldest passenger vessels still operating in the Mediterranean. Kytheriots have long been agitating for a second, smaller ship to link the island to the two nearby ports of Neapolis and Gytheion, leaving the Piraeus and Crete routes to the larger Myrtidiotissa or, preferably, a slightly more up-to-date replacement. This year, inexplicable delays in publishing the summer sailing schedules until well after Easter have dealt a blow to the local tourist industry.

http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/_w_articles_politics_100012_26/07/2008_98945