The decision made by the captain is understandable. Compared
with what Ernest Shackleton used a century ago, today we have much
better technologies, of course. But a considerable degree of risk is
still out there. In November 2009 the Russian Kapitan Khlebnikov
carrying 100 tourists was stranded for a week in Antarctic Sea. In
December 2008 the Ushuaia, carrying 89 passengers and 33 crew members,
was also stranded by ice in Antarctica. In January 2007 a Norwegian
ship named MS Nordkapp ran aground off Deception Island and eventually
sank after colliding with iceberg. The list can go on and on.
