Passengers on an Antarctic cruise ship that was hit by a deadly rogue wave have said the killer wave was "like a brick wall".
The Viking Polaris cruise to Antarctica had been sailing back towards Ushuaia, Argentina on Tuesday, November 29 when it became caught in a storm and was hit by an enormous wave, killing one and injuring four others.
American national Sheri Zhu, 62, has been named as the passenger who died in the tragic incident, Argentinean media report that she was hit by shattered glass.
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Deborah Terry, 69 and her wife Tamarah Castaneda, 61, were travelling on the same ship and have described the terrifying moment that the wave hit.
They had been in their cabin on the third floor of the ship when the wave struck at around 10:40pm.
"It was a horrendous jolt like the ship had ran into a brick wall. We had no experience with a rogue wave before," Terry told the Daily Mail.
Castaneda, who is a retired firefighter, said she thought there had been an explosion on board, saying that the noise was so loud it sounded like "two cars crashed into each other".
She revealed that immediately after the wave hit, the captain made an emergency "Code Delta" announcement and told passengers to stay in their cabins.
Terry recalled hearing people shouting as well as overhearing the crew being told that "the ship was taking on water".
The couple became so concerned that the ship could be sinking that they began packing a drybag together, but it was then announced that they would start moving again.
It wasn't until the next day that fellow passengers were told a woman had tragically died in the terrifying incident.
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Recalling the moment the captain announced the news, Terry said: "Her voice was hesitant…choking,
"She said, 'Unfortunately we lost a passenger in the incident. We are going to cut the trip short. Let's take a moment of silence.'"
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Several other passengers were injured by the wave, with Castaneda describing seeing people "banged up, bandaged and bruised" after the incident.
She added: "One man had stitches across his forehead, another woman had a bandage across her head. Another had a huge lump on their head that looked like he had been beaten up with a baseball bat."
Viking confirmed that the ship arrived in Ushuaia the following afternoon and that it has "sustained limited damage".
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In a statement, the cruise company said: "It is with great sadness that we confirmed a guest passed away following the incident.
"We have notified the guest's family and shared our deepest sympathies."
The company have now launched an investigation into what happened during the "rogue wave incident".
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