American students among 1,600 evacuated from Greek cruise ship

~ More than a dozen ships were involved in the rescue effort.

SANTORINI, Greece -- Scores of passengers climbed down rope ladders to rescue vessels after a Greek cruise ship struck a reef Thursday and started listing in the Mediterranean, forcing the evacuation of 1,600 people including North Carolina high school students.

Authorities said hundreds of American tourists, at least two school groups from Canada and more than 100 Spaniards were on the Greek-flagged Sea Diamond when it hit the rocks off the island of Santorini shortly before 4 p.m.

"A lot of us were taking pictures from when we were coming into Santorini. All of a sudden, there was this big jolt," said Catherine Small, 17, one of more than two dozen students from North Carolina on board.

"The ship was really far tilted. It was actually kind of freaking us out -- scary," said Small, who attends Chapel Hill High School.

More than a dozen ships were involved in the rescue effort, along with six navy rescue helicopters, two military transport planes and four warships.

"The ship was evacuated quickly and successfully. ... No one had as much as a nose-bleed," Merchant Marine Minister Manolis Kefaloyiannis said.

"With a ship this size, it's like dealing with a 12-story building. It's a difficult operation," he said.

The Merchant Marine Ministry said 1,195 passengers and 391 crew members were on board. Most of the passengers were from the United States.

David Land, 17, of Middle Creek High School in Apex, N.C., said he was taken to a restaurant after being evacuated and was due to travel to Athens on an overnight boat.

"Everybody is perfectly fine," he said.

His mother, Deniece Land of Raleigh, N.C., said she had talked to her son several times this week during the trip.

"They had been around Greece and Athens and were coming back from Turkey. He called ... and he said 'This ship is taking on water and we're going down.' I said, 'Don't play with me.' He said, 'I have a life vest on.'"

"All the passengers are off the ship safely, and everything is OK," said Giorgos Stathopoulos, spokesman for Louis Cruise Lines, a Cyprus-based tourism group, which operates the Sea Diamond.

Stathopoulos said the ship had taken on water and listed 12 degrees, but was stabilized when watertight doors were activated.

Passengers were taken by a small ferry and small boats to the island's main port.

Authorities said tugboats had been used to pull the ship free of rocks, helped by moderate prevailing winds.

Tourism Minister Fani Palli Petralia said the rescued passengers would be housed in Santorini hotels and return on chartered ships to Athens' main port of Piraeus early Friday.

"We are very happy with the outcome of the rescue operation. ... This is the start of an important tourism season with strong cruise bookings, especially from the United States," she said.

The 469-foot Sea Diamond vessel was built in 1986 and refurbished in 1999.

Also Thursday, a Filipino sailor was killed in an accident involving a different cruise ship on the western Greek island of Corfu. The 47-year-old man died and three other crew members were injured when a lifeboat harness snapped on the Bahamas-flagged Astoria, authorities said.

The Astoria is operated by the Transocean cruise lines based in Bremen, Germany.