The Italian Coast Guard took an ill crew member off the cruise ship Costa Deliziosa on Saturday, 31 October 2026. The ship had just left the port of Trieste in north-east Italy. It was about 5 nautical miles from the coast. The port authority of Trieste reported the rescue, Il Piccolo writes.
The crew member is a 53-year-old Italian man. He suddenly became ill on board. The reports do not give his name or his job on the ship.
How the rescue worked
The coast guard got a request for help. The operations room of the port authority (Capitaneria di porto) in Trieste then contacted the ship's doctor. They wanted to know how ill the man was, NordestNews reports.
The doctor found cardiac ischaemia. This means that not enough blood reaches the heart muscle. It can be the start of a heart attack. The doctor agreed that the man should go ashore. The doctor also offered to go with him on the rescue boat.
The coast guard sent its patrol boat CP 2084 to the ship at once. It also called the 118 emergency medical service for an ambulance. At the ship, the team made the man stable. The boat then brought him to the coast guard's quay in Trieste.
An ambulance team was already waiting there. They took him to Cattinara, the city hospital in Trieste, TriestePrima reports. The reports do not say how he is now.
This is the second heart emergency on a ship that Crewboard reported in a few days. On 30 October, a seafarer with chest pain was taken off the car carrier Demeter Leader in Vietnam.
What it means for crews: heart problems at sea
A heart problem can happen to anyone on board, also to experienced crew. Quick action saves lives, because help at sea takes time. These steps can help:
Know the warning signs of a heart attack. Look for pain or pressure in the chest, or pain that spreads to the arm, jaw or back. Other signs are short breath, cold sweat and feeling sick.
Do not wait or hide it. Tell the officer of the watch or the ship's doctor at once, even if the pain seems small.
Most cargo ships have no doctor. The master can get medical advice by radio from a doctor on shore. The coast guard rescue centre can help to arrange this.
Write down the time the pain started and how the person feels. The shore doctor and the rescue team will ask for this.
Keep the ship's medical chest and defibrillator (AED) ready, and know where they are. Take part in first aid drills.
A rescue goes faster near the coast. Report a serious case early, while the ship is still close to a port.
Tell your family the name of your ship and your company's contact details. Then they can get news if you are sent to hospital.
Emergency numbers and other help for seafarers are on the Crewboard useful links page.
Cover photo: the cruise ship Costa Deliziosa at the cruise terminal in Trieste in May 2022. The photo was taken before this rescue. Photo: Iswoar, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Sources: Il Piccolo (in Italian), 31 Oct 2026: Illness on board a cruise ship, Trieste Coast Guard saves a 53-year-old, NordestNews (in Italian), 31 Oct 2026: Trieste Coast Guard coordinates and carries out a medical evacuation of a seafarer, TriestePrima (in Italian), 1 Nov 2026: Seafarer taken ill on a cruise ship brought ashore, taken to Cattinara.
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