BEAUMONT, Texas — Two sisters born and raised in Beaumont say they travel often, planning trips at least four times each year.
Linda Hargraves and DiAnne Thomas love hitting the road to see what the world has to offer. The two sisters booked a 12-day cruise across Norway as their most recent trip. Little did they know it would become a near-death experience.
"We heard a crash in the bathroom, glass is sliding, breaking and the ship rocked again and more glass broke, so we knew something was up," Thomas said.
That something water bursting through the windows of the cruise ship just off the coast of Norway. Engine failures prompted the captain to issue a distress call for the Viking Sky.
The head of Norway's Maritime Authority, said Wednesday that low oil levels were the "direct cause" of the engine failure that stranded the Viking Sky on Saturday.
"We looked at each other like, 'is that?'" Hargraves said. "Then he said this is not a drill."
Wind gusts reached up to 40 miles per hour. Debris went flying, and water started seeping onto the ship.That's when the two sisters rushed to the bottom of the ship and rode out the storm inside a theater.
"Pretty quickly after we got in the mustard station, we were told basically that the ship was not going down," Thomas said.
With more than 1300 people on board, this vacation turned into a rescue mission. Some were airlifted, while others like Hargraves and Thomas stayed on board until they made it to the port.
"Maybe we shouldn't have been there, that's not my call but he got us out of there. The captain and the crew got us out of that situation," Hargraves said.
The sisters tells 12News the company gave them a full refund and vouchers for a future cruise.